Girl Next Door
by AGoldenCharm
Summary: Mike Chang is suddenly finding love in places he'd least expect it.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I recently saw a prompt for Tina/Mike that I thought I'd take, so here it is! Multiple chapters, so stay tuned...**

* * *

Mike Chang likes to eat. He mostly likes to eat because food is a constant in a world that he's still kind of getting used to, and it's hard to find constants nowadays. It doesn't really matter what _kind_ of food, really, probably because he's a guy and guys just shovel it down without a second thought (although he likes to consider himself a little more dignified than _that_). But when people say that girls turn to comfort food when times get hard, he thinks it's a little unfair because guys do the exact same thing.

"Don't just throw your cup away like that, Mike."

Brittany's airy voice breaks his reverie as he blinks away his preceding thoughts. Brittany is staring at him with shock etched in her face, her eyes switching between his eyes and his plastic cup- the one that he had just drunk juice from.

"What do you mean, Britt?" Because he's used to this, actually. He's used to being patient and not really understanding Brittany's words on the surface, but he likes to think that he understands her on some type of deeper level. He does a pretty good job of reading her emotions, her intentions, and her expressions, if he says so himself. She's a confusing kind of girl, but one thing's for sure- she can always make him smile.

"You have to flatten it," she explains, rolling her eyes as if it was obvious. "We have to make trash as flat as possible. Otherwise the garbage men can't fit it in their trucks."

"Of course," Mike nods slowly, using both hands to crush the plastic cup and then presenting it to her. "Better?"

"Much better," she agrees, swinging one leg over his and nuzzling his neck. "My mom says if we make things easier for the garbage men, we can save the rain forests."

He laughs good-naturedly, "Your mom's right, I bet."

"Oh, it's no laughing matter," Brittany says sternly.

Mike sobers up quickly, "Of course it's not." He kisses her warm cheek encouragingly. "I'll help you save the rain forests, okay, Britt?" He holds up his flattened cup for her to see and then tosses it into the nearby trash can.

She gives him a huge grin and then turns to chat with Santana, who is sitting next to her. As he sort of kind of eavesdrops on them, hearing them talk about taking a trip to the mall the next day, Finn's voice pipes up.

"Why are you all dressed up?" Finn asks with an arched eyebrow.

He isn't _really_ all that dressed up- although he is wearing a nice button down shirt and a pair of thin suspenders that he had recently bought not too long ago- but he smiles in response, "I'm taking Britt out to an early dinner."

"An early dinner?"

"Yeah, she hates eating out late."

"Why are you guys going out to dinner?" Finn asks quizzically, munching on his sandwich.

"It's our one month anniversary," Mike proclaims proudly, smiling widely.

Finn's eyes grow wide, "Wow! Really? Congrats, dude."

"Thanks," he grins sheepishly.

"Hope you're ready, though," Finn replies cheerfully as he crams the remainder of his sandwich into his mouth.

"Ready for what?" Mike blinks, confused.

"You'll see," Finn gives him an irritatingly knowing look before standing up to leave, a smirk on his lips.

"Smart-ass," Mike mutters under his breath once Finn leaves.

* * *

One of Mike's favorite things about Brittany is her smile. When she's happy, she just _glows_. It kind of pains him a little how often her face is just completely nonchalant, though. Most of the time, her mouth is straight and expressionless. He used to think that she's just consistently mad at him, but when he had hesitantly brought it up a week into their relationship, she had laughed herself silly.

"What is there to be mad about?" She had asked him with the most bewildered expression on her face.

"I- I don't know," Mike had stammered. "You weren't smiling and your eyes were all narrow."

"I try not to smile too much because it hurts people's eyes," she informed him matter-of-factly.

"I- what?" At this point, Mike had not quite adjusted to Brittany's eccentric viewpoint of the world, and it was very difficult not to just stand there and gape.

"When I was little, my dad told me that my teeth were so white that I could blind people with them," she leaned into him as if telling him a secret. "So I don't want to take that risk. Sometimes I can't help it, though. That's why I laugh into my hands or off to the side."

And so yeah, Mike has had quite the job getting used to Brittany, but ever since _she_ had asked him out a month ago (her boldness was something that he couldn't help but be a little turned on by), he had made it his job to get to know her, to understand her, to see past the cheerleading uniform that everyone else focused on.

He had dropped her off at her house so she could get ready (though he didn't really understand what she needed to do... whenever they went out, she just stayed in her Cheerios uniform, like always) and he lounged around at home for half an hour or so before bounding out to his car again. He is one of the few people in their grade that actually had a license and a car, which means he is always driving people around, but it is totally worth having easy, accessible transportation. He is about to clamber into his car when he sees a girl outside the house next door walking her dog.

He had heard about the new family that had just moved in less than a week ago- the Cohen-Changs. They had moved in from Illinois not too long ago and he had watched for a week as the moving trucks parked obnoxiously close to his driveway. He didn't know the Cohen-Changs had a daughter, though. Deciding it would be reasonable and friendly to welcome her to the neighborhood, he pockets his keys and strides over to her- she is standing at the foot of her driveway, her eyes focusing on her golden retriever.

"Hi!" Mike calls out cheerfully as he approaches her. "I'm Mike," he juts out his hand for her to shake. "Welcome!"

As he gets closer to her however, he begins to drink in her appearance and is actually kind of astounded by it. Not necessarily in a bad way, per se, but it's extremely alarming for Lima. Boring old Lima that kind of reminds him of like... gray oatmeal or something because as soon as a burst of color appears, Lima goes haywire.

Except... she is quite literally almost the opposite of a burst of color. She's wearing all black- a heavy-looking black dress lined with lace that goes down past her knees. The neckline scoops modestly and she is decked out in jewelry. Black bangles, flashy black skull earrings, and a flower hair pin that is perched in her jet black hair. He feels like it's safe to assume that this girl is goth, he muses, sizing up her all-black attire and her heavy eye makeup. She's pretty, though.

"H-hi," she stammers, taking his hand hesitantly. "I'm Tina. Tina Cohen-Chang."

It's kind of weird to him that she has his last name in hers, but then again- it wasn't as if he got to decide who had the same last name as him. "Welcome to the neighborhood," he welcomes her warmly, offering her his best, beaming smile. She looks painfully nervous- her hands are running the leash through her fingers at an alarmingly fast speed and she is licking her lips anxiously.

"Thanks," she mumbles shyly, glancing up at him through her thick lashes.

He grins at her, "No problem. You're going to McKinley, right? How do you like it here so far?"

"It's... it's good, I guess," she says quietly. "New school, you know. It's hard to fit in."

He can imagine. Her choice of wardrobe is probably not making it any easier on her, either, he observes. His heart kind of goes out to her, though, because Tina seems like a genuinely sweet girl so far. "You'll fit in in no time," he smiles reassuringly. "You should play a sport or join a club or something. You'll make friends in no time."

"I already signed up for glee club," Tina perks up a little. "My audition is tomorrow."

Mike stares blankly. "We have a glee club?"

"I think the Spanish teacher just started it this year," she shrugs, winding the leash around her hand and glancing down at her dog, who is now jumping onto Mike's knees.

"Gotcha," Mike says absently while turning to the dog. "Cute dog."

"This is Jasmine," Tina offers with a small smile. "Most people get siblings. My parents decided on a dog instead."

Mike laughs appreciatively, "I'm an only child, so at least you've got something. Hey Jasmine," he coos as he rubs the eager dog behind her ears. "I actually have to run- I've got a date in less than fifteen minutes."

"O-oh," she says hesitantly. "I guess I'll see you around? Thanks for the advice. You know, about making friends here. It's gonna be tough."

"No, it's not," Mike grins as he begins to walk away. "You've already made one- your charming next door neighbor." And with that, he waves a quick goodbye and gets into his car because he knows that if he's late to pick up Brittany, she tends to get very, _very_ confused.

* * *

Dinner goes quite normally for the two of them. Brittany's hair is down for once, which he loves- he personally thinks the ponytail is a little too severe of a look, but he's also kind of too scared to say anything. Girls were weird and last time he had absently commented on her new shoes (all he had said was that they looked hard to walk in!) she had broken down in tears for a good ten minutes. She orders spaghetti because she loves to pretend they're in _Lady and the Tramp_ and he orders a chicken sandwich.

As he pays for the bill later on, she starts to run her feet up his legs underneath the table and he tenses up immediately. Her toes have already made their way into his crotch and he's actually kind of impressed by their mobility and coordination, seeing as how he has never been able to even separately move his toes. But at the same time, he knows what this means. It means she's getting antsy, which means they will probably spend a good chunk of time making out in his car before he drops her off at home. And because his hormones are egging him on, he takes Brittany's hand, stuffs his wallet back into his pocket, and dashes out the door, hurrying to his car.

"Mmmf," he manages as her lips crash onto his before they even make it to the car. He helplessly tries to find his car keys, which are buried annoyingly deep in his pockets, and unlocks his car door in a frenzy. He and Brittany scramble into the back seat and before he knows it, she's on top of him, pinning him to the seat, with a mischievous look on her face.

Brittany tastes like bubblegum. She always does, not because she chews it or anything, but because she uses her bubblegum lip balm religiously. He has grown familiar with the taste, with the texture of her lips. She kind of puts him into a complete haze most of the time, seeing as how aggressive she gets when they make out. It kind of forces his brain to shut down a little, just allowing her to do her thing because boy, did she know what she was doing.

She pulls away for a moment and he blinks in confusion, mumbling. "...Britt?"

She is reaching into_, _yes, _into_ her Cheerios uniform and suddenly, she is tossing something onto his chest. He bends his neck a little to get a closer look. It's a small square of shiny plastic. And what can only be rubber inside.

Mike can't lie, at this point, he's getting insanely alarmed. He's a virgin, and he knows all too well that Brittany isn't. In fact, he is fairly certain that she's slept with ninety-nine percent of the guys in their school, and most of the time, he can overlook that fact. But now, with her being so sure of having sex right then and there and him not feeling comfortable with it at _all_, he's getting kind of annoyed at the idea.

"_Now_?" He breathes, his chest rising and falling steadily.

"Of course," Brittany whispers, proceeding to rip open the package, waving the condom in the air a little.

He sits up a little, gently pulling her away from him. "Brittany... We've only been going out for a month."

"I know," she cocks her head in confusion. "That's the cap."

"That's the... wait, what?" It's Mike's turn to be thoroughly confused.

"It's the cap," Brittany attempts to elaborate. "Santana told me that that's the longest you can date someone without having sex. It's like, the golden rule or something."

"The _what_?" Mike splutters incredulously. "That's gotta be-" It is then when he realizes that _this _is what Finn had mentioned at lunch the other day. Which means that _everyone_ knows about what Brittany is calling the "golden rule". He frowns. "Brittany... I just don't know if I'm ready to have sex after going out with someone for only a month."

"Why not?" Brittany whines a little, a pouting frown on her face that usually wins him over in a nanosecond.

But there's something very distinctly different about the idea of sex for Mike. There's something about being a virgin that makes the idea of _losing_ his virginity very earth-shattering. And even if Brittany felt like it was okay to have sex after just a month, he isn't really willing to change his mind about it. It makes Finn and Puck and them call him a pussy, but he doesn't really care.

_"So, have you and Brittany done it yet?" Puck had asked jeeringly._

_"No," Mike had replied coolly._

_"That's weird, haven't you guys been going out for a week?" _

_"Yeah..."_

_"Looks like you won't be breaking any records, then!" Puck grinned._

_"What do you mean?" Mike had asked, slightly annoyed._

_"The record for getting Britt to sleep with you is two days right now. Held by yours truly."_

_Mike had wrinkled his nose in disgust at the idea of Puck and Brittany, but he tried very hard to shake the image..._

"I just... we shouldn't. I can't, Britt," he says softly, brushing back Brittany's hair and kissing her temple gently. "Maybe someday. But not now. I can't."

Brittany looks more confused than ever, but she nods slowly, climbing into the passenger seat. "Will you take me home?" She asks quietly.

He sighs, watching his girlfriend curl up a little in her seat. "Sure, Britt."

* * *

"So," Finn asks cheerfully the next day at lunch. "How was the one-month closing deal?" He grins as Puck cheers and offers him a fist bump.

"We didn't do it," Mike shrugs, answering very reluctantly.

Finn and Puck are dead silent as they stare at Mike as if he grew a leg out of his forehead or something.

"You... you didn't _do_ it?" Puck asks incredulously. "But... the one-month rule! And... it's _Brittany_."

It kind of bothers him that his girlfriend has a reputation for putting out in the blink of an eye, but they had talked the night before on the phone after he had dropped her off at home and they had come to an agreement- one that said that she would accept that he didn't want to have sex just yet and that they would still be dedicated to each other. And that's all he really needs- just some reassurance that Brittany is still okay with the situation and that _he_ doesn't need to compromise himself for it. God, he feels like a girl sometimes.

"No, we didn't," he snaps. "I didn't want to."

"You. Turned. Down. Sex?" Puck's jaw practically smacks the floor on it's way down.

Mike is grateful that the Cheerios weren't eating with them that day because they had an extra practice during lunch- so it was just the football guys. "_Yes_, I turned down sex. And no," he cuts Puck off before he even has a chance to open his mouth, "I don't regret it. I don't need sex to survive like you."

Puck smirks, "So you're a girl."

"Call it what you want," he rolls his eyes, standing up to toss his lunch tray. "I don't want to hear it again, though," he snaps again as Finn opens his mouth to say something. "See you guys around."

* * *

Mike likes autumn far more than winter because of the temperature and lack of snow. It gets pretty damn cold in Ohio and he likes to take advantage of every last moment of sunshine by running outside after school. It's usually just around the neighborhood a couple of times- enough to get him panting by the end- but it's energizing and fun. He usually straps his iPod to his arm, pulls on a pair of basketball shorts and a t-shirt, and heads out the door before the sun decides to set.

He left extra early that day, dropping his backpack on the ground as soon as he gets home and dashing to his room to change. Sometimes school really got to him in the sense that he could feel the impatience building up inside of him all day long and the only thing he can do is wait until he can let it all out by taking a jog. The air is crisp and biting today, and he wrinkles his nose a little as the wind meets his face. He's barely run fifty meters when he runs into Tina, who isn't wearing her usual black getup. She's in a pair of gray sweatpants and a baggy t-shirt and her hair is twirled into a knot at the top of her head.

Mike quickly pulls his headphones out of his ears and grins. "Hey!"

She stops in her tracks, nearly running into him head-on. "Hey," she smiles back at him. "Out for a run?"

"Yeah, need to catch this weather while it lasts, you know?" He replies breezily, inhaling deeply to take in the brisk autumn air.

"I know what you mean," she nods understandingly. "I hate getting stuck on the treadmill over the winter."

"Ughh at least you _have_ a treadmill. I practically hibernate in the winter- just eating and sleeping in the warmth. No exercise."

Tina laughs. Her laugh is a sweet, fresh thing that kind of makes him want to hug her, even though that would totally freak her out. "Well, you are definitely invited to use my treadmill over the winter."

"We should make a pact to stay in shape," he suggests, placing one hand on his hip.

"A pact to stay in shape? You don't really look like you need it." She flushes red immediately after the words leave her mouth and he's kind of flattered, honestly.

"Believe me, I do," he sighs. "Coach would never let us back on the football team if we lost all that muscle and gained all this fat instead."

"I don't think you have anything to worry about," she comments quietly. "I'm gonna keep going," she points to the sidewalk, indicating that she's ready to ditch their boring conversation.

"Oh, yeah. Of course," he nods quickly. He's suddenly realizing how cool it would be to have a running partner because it gets kind of lonely running mile after mile by himself. "And Tina?" He pipes up as she begins turning on her heel to run in the opposite direction.

"Yeah?"

"Maybe we can go running together tomorrow?"

Her smile is bright, brighter than he's ever seen it so far. "I'd love that."

* * *

**A/N: WHOA, Mike and Brittany? Haha I'm not a fan of Mike/Brittany at all, if that indicates the direction of this fic. ;)**

**Review and let me know what you thought about this!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: New chapter for this story! Hope you enjoy. :)**

**

* * *

**Mike actually really enjoys football. And he's pretty damn good at it, too, if he says so himself. To be perfectly honest, he initially didn't even want to try out for the team, but Matt had convinced him otherwise, mostly with dangling threats of falling deep into a social pit and being unable to get a date until he was twenty. But he wasn't even sure if he was coordinated enough to catch and throw a football, but it looked kind of easy in general- it was just running down the field with the football pinned under the arm, right? And so he shook off the dubious thoughts that had haunted his mind and went out for the team, surprising himself and many others when he had made it. But now, football was such a big part of his life that it was kind of hard to imagine his life without it.

The way it usually worked was that Mike would work his butt off during a game, even though his motivation usually stemmed from self-improvement than for the good of the team, but that's kind of how he is. After the game, he usually finds Brittany, who always performs a kickass routine with the rest of the Cheerios, and most of the time he wants to bring her out for ice cream or something afterward, but somehow they always manage to wind up in his car making out. More than once now, Puck had caught them in the backseat of his car and tapped the window obnoxiously, offering them a devilish grin.

But today feels different. And he can't really figure out why, except for the fact that they _won_ the game, which was abnormal in itself. While the team cheers raucously, heading off to the lockers behind a beaming Coach Tanaka, Mike shuffles over to where the Cheerios are standing. Brittany is chatting animatedly with Santana and when he approaches them, Santana bats at Brittany's hand as if in warning.

"Hi Mike!" Brittany greets him brightly, folding her hands together behind her back.

"Hey," he smiles, kissing her cheek. "I saw your new routine today- it was incredible."

"Thanks," she says cheerfully, reaching for his hand with hers. "I gotta go get changed, though. I'm all sweaty and gross."

"You're not gross," he replies firmly. "You look great."

But regardless, she and Santana sprint off to the locker rooms, and Mike tilts his head to the side in confusion as he spots his girlfriend's hand lace together with Santana's.

"You gone on a date with both of them yet?"

Mike turns around to find Finn standing behind him, peeling his helmet off of his head. "What do you mean?"

"With Brittany and Santana."

"You mean... you mean both of them?" Sometimes Mike feels like he's a little clueless in the jock world. What with the annoying "golden rule" that he had just learned about not too long ago and everything else that Puck likes to tease him about, he kind of gets the feeling that there's a lot that he just never gets. And now there's _this_, because apparently Finn and everyone else knows that Brittany and Santana go out on dates _together_ with another guy but he had no idea at all.

"Yeah," Finn shrugs, starting to walk over to the locker room. "They usually do this thing where they take you out to Breadstix and you just get to watch them like, make out for a good half hour."

"_What_? _Usually? _Are you serious?" Mike's never really understood the appeal of watching that kind of thing. Sure, it was hot or whatever, but Brittany's _his_ girl and the last thing he wants is to see her with someone else, regardless if it's a boy or a girl. Come to think of it, Brittany and Santana spend inordinate amounts of time together, and he knows they're best friends and everything, but is _this_ what they did when they were together?

"Yeah, it gets pretty hot," Finn nods knowingly. "Although it's weird sometimes because you feel they don't even notice that you're there."

Mike wrinkles his nose at the thought. Yeah, he's _definitely_ getting kind of uncomfortable with the idea. Not that he has anything against lesbians or anything, but more because he's kind of possessive when it comes to relationships- not in an anti-feminism, misogynistic way or anything. More in the sense that he likes to know that the relationship is precious enough to the both of them so that _sharing_ isn't really an option. And knowing Santana, he kind of has a feeling that when Brittany and Santana make out, it's nowhere near chaste or innocent.

As he sheds his football uniform slowly, his mind wanders.

* * *

Mike needs a run. He's all ready to dash out of his house when he remembers the suggestion that he had previously made to Tina. He kind of feels like a ten-year-old boy asking for a play date when he ends up on her porch, ringing her doorbell anxiously.

Tina doesn't answer. It's someone else- probably her mom, by the looks of it. She is short and kind of wrinkly, but she wears a cheerful expression on her face, one framed by laugh lines and sparkling eyes. She starts to ramble a little when she finally gets a good look at him.

"Oh! Chang, right? Neighbor- Tina?"

He can't really make heads or tails out of her words, but she's kind of adorable so he just laughs and replies, "I'm looking for Tina, I was hoping she might want to go out on a run with me."

But before he can say anything else, Tina's head is poking out the door frame. "Hey Mike," she smiles as her mom rushes back into the house and out of sight. "What's up?" She's leaning on the door frame casually, looking up at him and that's when he realizes that he hasn't said anything yet.

"Hey," he greets her with a grin. "I thought maybe we could go out on a run today?"

"Oh! Yeah, sure. I need to get changed, though," she motions toward her plum-colored dress. "Why don't you come in? You don't mind waiting, do you?"

"Nope," he shrugs, stepping inside and shedding his shoes. She's already sprinting up her stairs, leaving him in the foyer of the Cohen-Changs' house. Their house is really..._pretty_. Nothing like his own, which is decked out with silver and black and looks modern but doesn't really have any aesthetic appeal. Tina's house looks kind of rustic, and he can't really believe that he's addressing interior design in his own mind, but he can't really help but notice how homey their house feels even when they had moved in less than a month ago.

"I'm ready," she calls out while bounding down the steps. She's wearing yoga pants and an old t-shirt, and she's in the process of pulling a headband into her hair.

"Great," he replies, opening the front door again for them to exit. "Why do I have a feeling that you're gonna outrun me today?"

She snorts, "Yeah, right. You're a _football _player. You're _athletic_. I run so I don't pass out when I go up a couple flights of stairs."

He grins as they begin to break out in a light jog down her driveway and toward the sidewalk. "You _say_ that but how do I know you're not just being modest?"

"Believe me, if I could run, I would have joined the track team in a heartbeat."

"Speaking of joining things, did you get into the glee club?" Mike remembers suddenly. Tina actually has really nice form when she runs- her legs are surprisingly long for someone so short and she sort of glides across the sidewalk.

"Well, yeah, but _everyone_ got in. There are only five of us. Six, if you count Finn, who just joined because Mr. Schuester begged him to do so."

"_What_? Finn joined the glee club?" Mike asks, stunned. "_Really_?"

"Believe me, I'm shocked, too." Tina's breathing is getting a little bit heavier as they round the corner down the next block. "But the boy's got a voice and we've only got five people, so we figured...why not?"

Mike takes a while to digest this information. From what he's heard so far amongst the other guys, the glee club wasn't about to break any popularity records- the first time any of the guys had mentioned it, Mike had immediately thought of Tina, but he kept quiet as the rest of them jeered about the kid in the wheelchair and the other guy who was apparently gay. If Finn has really joined as well, Mike is actually very doubtful that his football stardom would prevent him from getting picked on just like the rest of the club.

"You don't look so good today," Tina comments suddenly.

"Yeah, I guess there's just been a lot on my mind," Mike shrugs. What with Brittany running off with Santana all the time, he doesn't ever really feel all that inclined to be cheerful or anything.

"What's wrong? If you don't mind me asking."

"I don't mind. Girl troubles, I guess. _Two_ girls, to be perfectly accurate."

"...Two girls?"

He turns to look at her while maintaining their pace. "Do you know my girlfriend? Brittany?"

"Y-yeah, kind of. She's a Cheerio, right?"

"Yeah, she is. She..." How does one phrase a sentence like this? "She's like... bi or something."

"Oh." Her voice has this knowing ring to it that makes him feel kind of queasy. "...With Santana?"

How does she... "Yeah, I guess."

"While you guys are going out?"

"I... I don't think so. Like before we went out. But Finn said that the two of them take a guy out on a date and just... just make out in front of him."

"And you don't want that."

"Not really." He kind of wonders if Tina is judging him. And even though he just met her, he can't help but feel a little defensive, regardless if she's judging him or not. Plus, it makes him kind of uncomfortable that he's confiding _this_ issue out of all issues he could possibly be having at the moment. He doesn't really get why it makes him feel this way, but he _does_ know that he's hoping with all his heart that she and Santana aren't... doing things _now_. _Now_ while they're _dating_.

"Just talk to her," Tina says in between huffs. She's swinging her arms at her side, doing a pretty good job about keeping her pace.

"I hate it when people say that," Mike pouts. "That makes it sound easier than it is."

She laughs. "Life isn't meant to be easy, Mike."

She's right.

* * *

There's something inherently wrong with the school library at McKinley. For one thing, no one ever uses it. No one just _hangs out_ at the library because it's just not cool. But his incomplete math homework begs to be finished and so he finds himself at the library during lunch, hopelessly trying to understand limits as the clock ticks away.

"Mike?"

He looks up even though he knows that he doesn't even have enough time to blink because he's pretty sure the bell's going to ring in less than fifteen minutes and he still has ten problems left to go. But it's Tina and she looks genuinely curious as to why he's sitting by himself in the middle of the library.

"Hey Tina," he sighs, raking his fingers through his hair. "What's up?"

"I was just about to ask you the same thing. I eat here most days during lunch."

He blinks at this information. "Why?"

He kind of regrets asking that because she flushes the deepest shade of crimson he has ever seen before. "Umm. I don't really have anywhere else... you know, to eat."

"_Oh_." His voice breaks a little as he exhales. He's fully aware that Tina, having just moved here, is having a difficult time fitting in. She joined glee club almost immediately, first of all, and that had been so quickly tagged as lame that she sort of killed her own social status as soon as she got here. Not that he blames her or anything- he had heard her sing the other day when he was walking by the choir room- she's incredible. But he knows that making friends in a new place is hard enough as it is. He offers her a small smile. "Wanna sit with me?"

She's clutching a brown paper bag in her gloved hands, and she's still a brilliant shade of pink. "Sure. What are you doing?" She gestures to the work that he has spread out in front of him.

"Math," he makes a face. "I didn't finish the homework. Limits are tough."

She scans the worksheet quickly, leaning in toward him a little. "Oh, we did these at my old school. Here," she pulls out a pencil from her messenger bag and scribbles something on his worksheet. "They taught us a trick."

As she explains the limits, he watches her carefully. She's so sweet- if only the social hierarchy at McKinley was based on genuine kindness, he thinks to himself. He's always sort of been known as the nice guy on the football team, but he also knows that he actually plays football, so his real boost of popularity doesn't come from his kindness in any sense. In fact, it's what causes the other guys to call him a sissy.

"Do you get it?"

"Actually- yeah. My teacher made this way more complicated than it actually is." He starts on the next problem with a renewed vigor, sort of sideways glancing at her as she pulls out a sandwich and peels away the saran wrap. "So you eat here most of the time?"

"Yeah." Her face is actually kind of marked with shame and he aches for her because there's absolutely no reason for her to feel that way.

He wants to tell her that she could eat with him at lunch if she wanted to, but he kind of knows that she would get booted from their table as soon as she arrived. He knows Azimio has a particular interest in picking on her- the other day in history class, he had made of Tina's dress for a good five minutes. And Mike had wanted to say something as a retort, _really_, but Azimio kind of scares him a little.

"Maybe I could eat up here with you sometimes?" He finally decides to say. She looks so sullen, nibbling on her sandwich with her eyes downcast and her long eyelashes curling down to veil her eyes.

She looks up at him with wide eyes. "Umm. Y-yeah. If you want. It's just me, though, so I can't imagine it'd be very interesting."

He grins at her, placing his hand over hers. "It will be, don't worry. Now I really have to give my homework my undivided attention or else my math teacher is going to punt me across the parking lot."

* * *

Ever since that day in the library, he had kept his word and continuously spent every other day eating with her. When Puck had questioned him, Mike had simply shrugged and replied that he needed to finish some homework. He was pretty sure he was coming off as a bit of a nerd at this point because when the other guys didn't finish their work, they usually just turned it in blank. But whatever. Lying about it felt kind of weird, but Mike didn't really know how else to approach the situation.

"That's totally not allowed."

They're playing Scrabble, which for some reason the library has, and Mike is losing _badly_. She just put down twenty-four points' worth of letters and all he can manage is a three-letter word. So he compromises a little and puts down as many letters as he can that sounds distinctly like a word.

"What are you talking about?" He laughs, "Winfer is totally a word."

"Oh yeah? What does it mean?" She challenges him.

"It's... like winter except-"

"-Except not a word."

"Fine," he grins, taking his tiles back and replacing them with _"fit"_. "But I don't like this game very much."

"Of course you don't," she says breezily. "I'm kicking your ass."

He likes how she's gotten a lot more comfortable around him and has stopped looking at her hands when she talks. In fact, she's actually a rather outspoken person, he eventually realized. She's opinionated, that's for sure, and was actually incredibly offended when he casually offered to carry her big science project to her class after lunch.

"I can carry it myself," she had scowled.

"I know, I just thought I might-"

"-Help because I'm a woman and I can't manage to carry a poster board by myself?"

He was at a complete loss for words but was actually very impressed by her independence. She had arched an eyebrow at him and then turned on her heel to leave for her class and he was left standing there, his foot totally in his mouth.

"You're not beating me by _that_ much," he reasons.

She glances down at the paper that she's been keeping score on. "Well, if forty-five points isn't that much..."

"_Forty-five_? No way!" He snatches the paper from her and looks down at the score in disbelief. "I want a score check."

"Are you saying you don't trust my score-keeping abilities?" She pretends to look offended.

"_No_, I'm just saying that I can't be _this _bad at Scrabble!" Although he's not sure how valid that statement is because he hasn't played this game since like middle school, and he wouldn't have imagined that it would be fun, either, but there he is, spending his lunch with Tina desperately trying to play down better words but failing _miserably_.

"Some people are just better at certain things," she teases, placing down her word one tile at a time. _F...L...I...C...K. "_Double word score... So that's... thirty-two points!"

"I hate this game."

"Of course you do."

* * *

**A/N: Another chapter done! Tell me what you thought about it! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

Sometimes, Mike wonders if he tries to hard. He genuinely likes to surprise Brittany at her place once in a while with coffee or with takeout or just for the fun of it. And she's usually all too receptive of it- they've ended up making out on her bed on more than one occasion. But at the same time, the coffee usually goes cold on the nightstand and the takeout is usually tossed out because she's watching her calories. It gets to a certain point when he wonders if he should just show up empty-handed because it's usually his lips that she wants. But he always feels kind of guilty if he doesn't have something to hand to her when she lets him into the house. So he continues his little tradition because it makes him feel a little more at ease.

Today, he's got fruit snacks. The Scooby-Doo kind because they're her favorite. They're silly and not really age appropriate, but they're _Brittany_ appropriate. She loves them, claiming that they're actually fruit so they _must_ be healthy. He's tried to explain otherwise several times now, but she's waved him off each time. He usually gets to the part where they're actually processed in a machine when she cuts him off, shaking her head at him and laughing. And so usually, it's kind of hard to argue with her.

She doesn't answer the door when he shows up at her house. He rings twice and everything, but no answer. Which is weird, because he knows she's home- he had texted her an hour ago wondering what she was up to and she had responded by saying that she was just hanging out at home. Unless she's left in the past half hour or so? He taps his foot impatiently, absently reaching out to touch the door handle. To his surprise, it's turning, which means it's unlocked. And yeah, he feels kind of like a creeper or a burglar or something, but he's her _boyfriend_, right? There has to be some unwritten law or something that allows them to come and go to each other's houses. Or maybe not and he should be arrested for breaking and entering. He creaks the door open anyway and slowly calls out.

"Brittany?" Her house seems to be empty. Brittany's parents work late hours at a restaurant they own, so he's not used to them being at her place, anyway, but sometimes, Brittany's little brother Jake, who is an absolute firecracker of energy and words and noises, is wandering around the house. But even rowdy Jake isn't home today, apparently, because the house is so quiet, he can hear his footsteps echoing in the hallway.

Except for... He hears rustling. Or thumping. Something of that general nature. And it's coming from upstairs. Slowly, he weaves his way up the staircase, feeling more creepy than ever, and rounds the corner toward where the sound is coming from. It's down the right side of the hallway and he soon realizes that it's coming from Brittany's bedroom.

And, it dawns on him as he approaches Brittany's open door, it's coming from Brittany. Well, not just Brittany. It's also coming from Santana. They are both lying in Brittany's bed.

"...Britt?" Mike isn't really sure what to make of the situation, mostly because neither of them are wearing their Cheerios uniforms, and while he's used to seeing Brittany in just her underwear, it's a little bit unnerving to see Santana in hers. It's also a little bit disconcerting to find their limbs intertwined and their lips very, very much pressed together.

Brittany...doesn't seem all that alarmed to see him. She giggles a little before disentangling herself from Santana and standing up to greet him. Santana is blushing a little, which is weird because Mike doesn't think he's _ever_ seen Santana embarrassed before, but Brittany is bright-eyed.

"Hi Mike!" Brittany's adjusting her polka-dotted bra and flashing Mike a big, cheerful grin.

"H-hi," Mike stammers, never feeling so out of place in his _life_.

"I was just leaving," Santana says briskly as she finds her uniform and pulls it on again. Mike averts his eyes. Sure, Santana's hot and all, but this has got to be a whole new level of _weird_.

"Um...Sure."

Before he has time to register anything else, Santana is flying out the door and Mike is left staring at his girlfriend, whose lips are swollen and whose hair is disheveled. And she is approaching him. Fast.

"Hi," her voice is sultry and low, the kind she uses when she's super turned on, and Mike knows exactly where she's headed. And he also knows that that direction is the _last _thing he wants right now.

"_Brittany_," he pushes her back gently as she gets dangerously close. "Do you... do you realize what I just walked in on?"

"Yeah, me and Santana," she looks genuinely confused.

"Yes. You _cheating on me_ with Santana."

"What?" Brittany is actually laughing. _Laughing_. "I wasn't cheating. Santana and I do this all the time."

"That doesn't make it okay," he says softly. Because suddenly, things are getting clearer to him. Brittany really _does_ do this with Santana all the time. Probably because it feels good to her. And definitely because she has _no idea that it's wrong. _

"Santana said it wasn't a big deal," she says slowly.

"It _is_ a big deal, Brittany. I thought we agreed that we'd be committed to only each other?"

"When did we say that?"

"When you agreed not to have sex a while back."

"Oh."

"Why are you doing this?" Mike's kind of aware that his voice sounds pleading. Because even if Finn and those other guys get turned on by seeing Brittany and Santana making out because it's not her making out with another _guy_, Mike only feels like he's been cheated on. Because that's what it is. Cheating.

"Well we weren't... we weren't having sex and I'm used to-"

"-You're used to having sex all the time?" Part of him wants to be shocked because she is basically saying that she needs a replacement or something to tide her over until he's willing to put out for her, but the other part of him isn't surprised at all. The truth is, she's Brittany, and she herself had claimed that she's slept with nearly all the guys in the school.

"Mike, that's not what I mean."

"What _did_ you mean?"

"I didn't know it was bad," she says quietly, unable to look him in the eye. Which means that she's finally realizing how hurt he feels.

He sighs. She makes it extremely difficult to be mad because sometimes, she just _doesn't_ know. It's like dating a child, actually, because he's always having to make excuses for her in order to smooth things over. It's like he needs to teach her all these social protocols, because even though Brittany is popular and all, she doesn't know the first thing about relationships. It's tiring, but he's always liked taking care of her. Until now. Now he just feels _exhausted_.

"Now you know."

"So... so are we okay?" Her voice is timid and unsure, and she actually kind of looks like Bambi with those big eyes and with how much she's shaking with uncertainty.

He exhales slowly and wraps his arms around her, hugging her to his chest to comfort her. "I don't know, Britt."

* * *

Mike can't stop thinking about Brittany and Santana. And _not_ in a sexy way. He can't help but wonder how many times they've been together, especially when he and Brittany have been going out. How many times have they made out in her bed? How many times have they done things that were much worse than making out? How many times has she _cheated_ on him with Santana? He has stopped eating lunch with the rest of the football guys and the Cheerios because most days during lunch, Brittany and Santana are sitting together whispering when he approaches the table and it kind of makes him feel sick, so he just turns around and heads for the library instead. The baby inside of him wonders if Brittany even notices that he's gone.

She does, however, at one point, because he gets a text from her her asking where he is.

Brittany: where are you?  
Mike: library  
Brittany: why?

He doesn't know if he has the heart to tell her that he's eating lunch there because each time he sees her and Santana, his entire body feels like it's being twisted into a pretzel because it reminds him about what he saw in Brittany's room the other day, so he lies.

Mike: homework

Mike doesn't really have any actual homework that's due that day but he knows Tina is in the library and she's someone he could really do with seeing right now because he just doesn't feel so good. And he's not sure how he feels about lying to Brittany about this, but he'd really much rather take the cowardly approach and just avoid Brittany until he gets his head screwed on straight again.

Tina, bless her heart, notices in a flash when he starts eating in the library with her every day instead of once every two days.

"With what do I owe you the pleasure?" She asks breezily as he sits down next to her again.

"What do you mean?"

"This is like the third day in a row you've come up here to eat with me. Not that I'm counting or anything."

"I don't really wanna talk about it."

"That's the first sign of a need for intervention," she leans in, waggling her finger at him, her thin eyebrows arched. "Denial."

"I'm not denying anything." He pauses because that's not entirely true. In an attempt to redeem himself, he mutters, "I'm not denying the fact that my girlfriend is cheating on me with another girl. With _Santana_."

Tina is quiet. She is toying with the ends of her long black hair and sort of hesitating as though she isn't quite sure what to say in the kind of situation where your next-door-neighbor's girlfriend is suddenly both bisexual and committing a minor form of adultery. He doesn't blame her.

"What happened?"

"I caught them," he says simply. He's trying to gauge the expression on her face but she's got her best poker face on and it's frustrating him. "Do you think I'm overreacting? Finn says it's hot."

"Girls making out? I don't know," she says slowly. "I've never understood that appeal for guys. But then again, _I'm_ a girl."

"Britt says they've been doing it for a long time."

"So then it became cheating once you and her started going out."

Mike blinks, staring at her. Tina is staring at him dead in the eye and he kind of recoils a little at how honest she's being. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

"Did you talk to her about it?"

"I tried. She didn't think she was doing anything wrong."

"_What_?"

"She's Brittany," he reasons. "She... views the world in a way that sometimes I worry I'll never be able to understand."

Tina's looking genuinely uncomfortable at this point. "Not... to insult you or your girlfriend or anything, but is this along the same lines as yesterday during history class when she thought that the Gettysburg Address was where Lincoln used to live?"

Mike remembers this. Brittany's little... not-so-bright comments and questions during class have gotten so frequent that he almost tunes them out now, but he _does_ remember this one because Finn had turned around and told her that she was right. And he had spent the rest of the class shaking his head in disbelief.

"I feel like I should be more offended by that but yeah, I'd say it's kinda along the same lines." In order to compensate for this, he adds sheepishly, "But I still like her. A lot."

"Then you should still talk to her."

"I know."

But the problem is, Mike doesn't know how to go about it. Because Brittany still thinks he's mad at her so she's giving him his space, and even though he _does_ want to fix things with her, he can't help but feel nervous every time he whips out his phone in an attempt to text her. He hasn't hung out with her for almost a week now, choosing instead to focus on his homework, which is a huge drag, and to hang out with Tina, which turns out to be a lot more relaxing and fun than he had originally anticipated.

Because Tina is _cool_. She's great to hang around and he finds that no matter what they're doing, they can chat casually and tease each other and everything is easy and relaxed and he kind of gets to forget about Brittany and Santana. They continue to go out for runs together but they've also sort of branched out to doing homework together in his room every once in a while after they've both had dinner. Which was kind of weird at first, and his mom had walked in expecting to find just him, but they were both on the floor, their math homework spread out in front of them, arguing about matrices. His mom had simply arched an eyebrow and asked if they wanted anything to eat. After Tina had left, though, his mom had totally grilled him.

"Was that the Cohen-Changs' daughter?"

"Yeah, mom."

"Are you guys friends now? That's so wonderful!"

"_Yes_, mom."

"Maybe we should invite her family over for dinner sometime!"

"_Sure_, mom."

"This is so exciting, Michael! We haven't had another Asian family to hang around with since the Zhangs moved away three years ago! Oh, I'll tell your father and we can invite them over next week! Or maybe earlier? Do you think we should-"

"_Mom_."

"Sorry."

They are walking back from the bus stop together after class the next day (he doesn't have the car this week at all, so he's reduced to public transportation, but Tina tends to make the ride more enjoyable with her sarcastic comments about her horrendous math teacher) when she starts walking up her driveway.

"You should just come over now," he suggests slowly. "I could really use the company- math homework makes me want to fall asleep."

She laughs, "Sure." She turns on her heel again and starts to walk toward his driveway instead. "But what are you gonna do on the days I don't come over?"

"Die."

"You're so dramatic."

He offers her a grin, "What can I say? You work wonders on my homework progress." He unlocks his front door and they walk up the stairs.

"You're gonna have to figure out a way to be efficient on your own, Mike Chang," she teases. "I can't help you all the time."

"Why not?" Mike pouts. "Can't I just bring you home everyday?"

"I don't think it works like that."

"Yeah, but life would be so much _easier_."

"Life _definitely _doesn't work like _that_, either. Is your life normally easy or something? Because we should totally trade."

Mike can't really help but notice, but Tina is _funny_. She's _real_ and _hilarious_ in more ways than he can count, and, he observes as she spreads out her math textbook on his carpet and lies down next to it, cradling her chin in her palm and resting on her elbows, she's casual and carefree and all sorts of things that he kind of finds refreshing.

"Anyway, I thought we'd go over the first lesson before we went on to the- why are you staring at me like that?"

He isn't really aware that he's staring at all until she recoils a little and gives him the weirdest look ever- as if he has started tap dancing right in front of her or sprouted antlers or _something_.

"Uh, nothing, sorry. What about the first lesson?"

She doesn't really look like she buys it, but she _does_ raise an eyebrow and lets it drop. "We should review the first lesson's notes before we do the unit homework."

"Right."

But he's stopped registering anything that's going on in the room, let alone the complicated math equations that lie before them.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Have another chapter! :)**

**

* * *

**Mike knows that after a certain point, avoiding Brittany will kind of be out of the question. Because he's done it for quite some time now mostly just because it's been easier than confronting her again, which is kind of a sissy thing to do, to be honest. But by now, she has already made it past the stage where she just tried to give him space, hiding behind Santana's shadow as she waited. Now it seems that she's waited long enough because she's sending him an entire stream of text messages as he chews slowly on his sandwich. As he deliberately reads each text, his eyebrows rise further and further up into his hairline.

Brittany: are you still at the library?  
Brittany: can we talk? please?  
Brittany: i'm so sorry, mikeee

He feels kind of bad because she _does_ seem sorry- or at least, sorry enough to text him- but he's having a hard time getting the image of her and Santana out of his head. He's a fair guy, though, and he knows he needs to give Brittany the chance. Plus, he kind of misses her and all her wackiness. He kind of misses all her little quirks and all her little comments that make some people roll their eyes but make _him_ smile. This is the first week in a very long time that they haven't gone out on a date together and it just feels _weird_. He's used to a lot of things with her, and now that he hasn't seen her for a week, it feels like she's getting phased out of his life.

"Brittany?" Tina asks knowingly as she arches an eyebrow, tilting her chair back a little as he begins to text Britt back. She is digging into her brown paper bag, which he feels like she uses every single day it's so wrinkled and worn out, and she pulls out a container of yogurt. Her lips are curled very slightly, as if she's holding something back that she really wants to say but knows better not to.

"Mhmm," he sighs, flipping open his phone and grazing his fingers across the keys before typing back.

Mike: let's grab coffee after football/cheerios  
Brittany: ok

"Getting better?"

Mike looks up at Tina, who is smiling faintly as she spoons yogurt into her mouth. "I don't know," he responds slowly. "We're gonna talk about it after school today."

"You know what you need to do, right?"

Mike blinks rapidly, because _no_, he has no idea what she's referring to and it's kind of making him feel stupid because she's raising her eyebrows again as if it was totally obvious. "Umm... comfort her?"

Tina rolls her eyes. "You're such a boy. You," she points her spoon at him, "need to help Brittany figure out what she wants."

"What she...wants?" Mike can only think of hot make-out sessions and fruit snacks. Because that's what Brittany always wants. It's not like she's a simple girl or anything, or that she only needs superficial things, it's just those are the things she's always craving, and he knows that so he delivers.

"_Yes_," Tina presses on. "Help her understand her feelings. And whether or not she has them for Santana."

"D'you... d'you think she does?" Mike is actually kind of panicking now because this whole time, he's been thinking that Brittany's thing with Santana was fixable- something silly that they could work together to get over but if Brittany actually has _feelings_ for Santana... well, that would complicate things. A lot. And besides, he isn't even sure if Britt is... bisexual or anything. Maybe she's just experimenting with something new. Saying that she has feelings for another girl is a bit of a stretch. Right?

"You never know," she shrugs unhelpfully. "But that doesn't mean it's not your job to find out."

He kind of hates that she's right, just like always, because he desperately wants things to go back to the way they were so that he and Brittany would be okay again and there would be no Santana in this stupid equation and Tina wouldn't be on the sidelines, shaking her head at his pathetic attempts to keep things straightened out. Mike knows that Tina is dead on with her advice, though, and his mind is already racing in an attempt to figure something out- especially what he's going to say to her. Because for all he knows, she could be thinking that if they went out for coffee, everything would be right again but it's _not_ because things still aren't fixed. He doesn't realize how silent it is between them until she speaks up softly.

"You gonna be okay?" Her voice is not really a question even though her words are. As if it's completely rhetorical and she's actually telling him that he _is_ going to be okay even though he himself has no idea.

He answers her anyway. "Yeah, yeah, I'll be fine." He shakes his head, "You know, we spend a an inordinate amount of time talking about me."

"I like talking about you," she's grinning but also kind of teasing which he kind of resents but mostly just appreciates.

"You don't have to make things up."

"I'm not making anything up!"

"But I feel like it's not fair," he reasons. "I've had lunch with you up here how many times now? And you're always having to listen to my relationship issues and-"

"-and whooping your ass at Scrabble."

"-_and_ I think we should talk about _you_ because I don't know you well enough. We hang out all the time during lunch or after school and we never get to talk about _you_," he presses on, ignoring the Scrabble jab because he's still licking his wounds from getting beat so badly.

She smirks at his obvious attempt to ignore her, "What do you want to know about me? I'm not very interesting."

"Sure you are," he says immediately.

"You just said you don't know me well enough," she points out. "How do _you_ know whether or not I'm interesting?"

She's being kind of a smart ass but he can't help but laugh, "Fine, fine. Just tell me about the wonder that is Tina Cohen-Chang." And even though it sounds kind of silly in his ears, he actually kind of wants to know about her. Like really badly. Because what he's noticed in the past couple of weeks is that Tina is a bit of an enigma. Maybe it's because he's been blindly confiding in her lately and sort of taking advantage of her insane math skills in a way that makes it hard to focus on _her_, but he really does want to get to know her. And not just because he owes it to her.

"I don't know what I'm supposed to say," she arches an eyebrow, clearly amused.

"How about I ask you questions and you answer them? Truthfully." He leans in, edging his chair closer to the table because for some reason, he's excited.

"Deal."

"Favorite color?" He starts simple.

"Not black," she says, reading his mind a little because yes, he has consistently been thinking that black's her favorite color because that's usually what she wears. "Magenta."

"That's specific," he comments. "And what is it about magenta that you like so much?"

She frowns, "I didn't know there was reasoning behind having a favorite color." She's toying with the ends of her hair, absently running her fingers through them. "I don't know, I think it's a pleasant color, but not too over-the-top and plus," she blushes a little, "it's a flattering shade."

"Favorite food," he prompts.

"Reese's ice cream all the way."

He makes a face. "_Coconut_."

"_Coconut_ ice cream?" She makes a gagging face and he kicks her playfully under the table because she did _not_ just hate on his favorite flavor of ice cream.

"_Hey_, I'll have you know, it's _delicious_," he folds his arms. "Biggest fear?" He's actually kind of uncertain about asking her this because he's not sure if they're at the point where he can just ask her something as heavy as this. But she doesn't look all that fazed as she soaks in his question.

"I think..." She's actually very adorable when she's deep in thought, Mike can't help but notice. Her nose scrunches up a little and her eyes cloud over a little as she taps her fingers against the table. "I think I'm afraid of losing my identity, you know? Like just becoming another face in the crowd. It's not really about becoming famous or anything," she adds as an afterthought. "It's more like not having any qualities that people can find and say... 'Oh, yeah, that's _definitely_ Tina.'"

Her answer strikes him as painfully true. Because she's totally right about the identity thing. "That's deep."

She makes a face, "Are you making fun of me again?"

He holds up his hands as if surrendering, "When do I ever make fun of you?" He becomes vaguely aware that their feet are touching underneath the table and he thinks about retracting his own, but decides against it.

"All the time," she pouts, resting her chin on her hand.

"You're the one that laughed at me because coconut ice cream is the best thing on the face of the planet."

"I didn't even know coconut ice cream was a real _thing_. What does it even taste like?"

"It tastes _amazing_."

"I bet it's not even a real flavor. Do you just put coconut shavings on your ice cream?"

"Bully alert! Bully alert!" Mike lifts his arms up and shakes his finger at her.

The librarian is narrowing her eyes at them and pressing her finger to her lips in frustration. Mike can feel himself flushing red as Tina practically keels over, unable to control her laughter.

* * *

Mike is waiting impatiently by the girls' locker room as he hears the Cheerios chattering noisily behind the door. He feels kind of creepy lurking outside, but Brittany had promised that she'd be ready to meet him right after her practice so he's kind of hovering by the door.

The door swings open and it practically clocks him square in the face but Brittany and Santana are streaming out and his gut clenches a little. He watches as the two girls exchange a look before Santana disappears down the hallway and out of sight.

"Hi," Brittany says softly, holding out her hand for him.

He looks at it for a moment before taking it hesitantly. "Hey." They walk down the empty hallway in silence, his shoes clacking against the linoleum floor. He doesn't think they've ever gone this long while in the same room without saying a single word to each other.

He leads her to his car, opening the passenger side door for her wordlessly. He's trying to read the expression on her face but it's so, _so_ difficult because Brittany is _always_ keeping a straight face and it just about drives him nuts. As he drives them down to the local coffee shop, he finally pipes up. "I think we need to talk, Britt. Like really_, really_ talk."

She turns to him a little, clutching onto her seat belt. "What do you mean?"

It takes all his energy not to give her a pained expression. "Britt. Be honest, okay? Do you like Santana?"

"Of course I d-"

"_No_. Do you have feelings for Santana?" His grip on the steering wheel is getting dangerously tight and he kind of has this mental image of himself ripping it out of its place but he knows he's nowhere near strong enough to do that.

Brittany is silent for quite some time before finally managing, "You mean like a lesbian?"

It's always astounded him how frank Brittany can be sometimes, and he continues to be both impressed and annoyed by it. "I guess you could say that."

"I like our sweet lady kisses," Brittany says slowly as if completely unaware that those couple of words were pretty much slaying his insides. _Their sweet lady kisses. Their make-out sessions. _

"That wasn't the question," he points out.

"I don't know." He looks over at her and her eyes are kind of panicky looking and even though he doesn't want to make her feel uncomfortable or anything, but he feels like it's a bit of a tell-tale sign. But a sign for what? A sign that she really does like Santana more than she likes him? A sign that she's done with him? Done with their relationship?

"You need to find out," Mike says tersely as they park but don't bother getting out of the car. They stare at each other for a moment in an awkward silence.

"I like Santana a lot," Brittany offers, her hands buried deep in her Cheerios jacket. She looks kind of embarrassed.

"Do you like her enough to want to be with her?" His teeth are grinding. He didn't even notice it at first but then his jaw kind of locks painfully and his hand flies to his mouth to rub the sore spot.

"I'm with her all the time," she cocks her head, confused. "During class, at Cheerio's practice-"

"No Britt. Like _be _with her in a relationship."

"Like you and me?"

"Well... no. Not like you and me," Mike sighs. "It can't be both. It's either you and her or you and me."

Brittany's eyes grow wide. "Are you... are you breaking up with me?"

"I don't know, Brittany. That's actually kind of up to you." He hates leaving decisions in other people's hands but this is kind of an exception.

Brittany doesn't really ever cry. He's noticed this quite some time ago. In fact, she's rather in control of her emotions, which he appreciates. But now it's making him feel a little bitter as she stares back at him. "I can't leave Santana."

"Is that your decision?"

"_No_. I don't know," she wails. "I thought you and I were special," she appeals to him, grasping his hand and tugging at it. "This is the most special relationship I've ever been in, Mike. Did you know that in every single relationship before you, I had slept with the guy in less than two weeks after we started going out."

"Not really helping things," he mutters.

"I'm just _saying_ that for us, it's not all about sex."

"What is it about, then? Making out until I'm ready?" The words out come out sounding a lot meaner than he originally intends. But it's like she's flipped a switch on somewhere deep inside of him and everything that's been hiding in the niches of his brain is rapidly starting to line up on his tongue.

"What? _No_. You- you don't enjoy it?"

"Sure I do," he reasons, running a finger through his hair. "But it's all we _ever_ do. Even on dates."

This is the closest he's ever seen her to shedding a tear and it's kind of breaking his heart as her bottom lip quavers a little. "We're special, Mike," she pleads. "Don't you think so?"

He's always believed that they're special, and his automatic response is yes, but the gears in his mind are already spinning at high speeds as he considers this. Besides this whole waiting for sex thing, _not really_. He's seen Brittany and her past boyfriends before. At Breadstix, in the hallways at school, after football games. It's the same thing for them, too. They get treated to an infinite number of kisses from her but he's seen _himself_ there, too. He's been one of those faceless guys that she's dated and the only thing that separates him from any of the rest of them is his prudishness, he's sad to conclude.

"Maybe," he says quietly, retracting his hand from hers a little. "But not any more special than any of your other boyfriends. And _definitely _not as special as Santana."

Because it's true, he sighs internally. He's seen Brittany with Santana, their pinkies linked as they walk to class together, way before he had started dating Brittany, and he hadn't thought much of it then but it's so _true_. She and Santana have outlasted any boyfriend Brittany's ever had. No matter if they want to be in a relationship or not.

"You- you are breaking up with me," her voice cracks a little as she raises both hands to cover her nose and mouth, lines forming around her eyes as they turn downwards.

Is he? Does he want to? Because as much as this stuff is blowing up in his face, he can't help but remember how much Brittany can make him smile, how great their dates can be, and how much he values her company. The truth is, she's _great_ and his brain can't really register whether or not he's willing to give her up just like that. He presses his lips tightly together before the answer floats to his lips as if on its own accord.

"Yes."

She's not even the only one reacting to his response. His own brain is reeling as the answer left his mouth because his entire body is deflating rapidly as she makes a small, squeaking noise in despair. And even though she's not crying, that one little sound could have easily replaced a bucketful of tears because he feels _awful_ for making her tremble like that. The car feels uncomfortably small as he starts the ignition up slowly again.

"I'm sorry, Brittany. I just... I can't do this. It wouldn't be fair to you, Santana, or myself."

"I-it's okay," she croaks as he begins to drive out of the parking lot and toward her house.

"I'll send you home," he says softly, trying his hardest not to look at her because he has a feeling that if he gets one look at her broken expression, he might just suffer the worst case of guilt in history.

"Okay."

As he pulls up on her driveway, he unbuckles his seat belt and leans over the gear shift to place a gentle kiss on her cheek. "You're a special girl, Brittany. And I hope whoever you end up with really appreciates that."

She gives him a weak, watery smile before hugging him quickly. Her hand is on the door handle as she sighs. "Right back at you."

He watches her sullenly as she gets out of his car, walking up the driveway and toward the front door. She's got her cellphone out and it looks like she's texting someone as she walks into her house, her feet dragging. It's probably Santana. And, he realizes as he pulls out of the driveway slowly, he can come to terms with that.

* * *

**A/N: This chapter was so hard to write but I hope you guys liked it! :) Let me know what you thought.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Sorry it's been so long since I updated this! I was working on some other fics. But here it is!**

* * *

As it turns out, not having a girlfriend can put a serious damper on your social life. Mike's spent quite a few days hanging with the football guys now- playing pick-up games of football at Finn's place and occasionally going to the movies for some action film. And sure, getting to tackle his way through some of his latest anxieties has been nice and he can always go for a movie or two, but it feels _weird_ being single again.

He's also been spending more and more time with Tina, usually after school at either his place or her place. It's kind of weird because the time he spends with her almost replaces the time he used to spend with Brittany, but it's also not weird because it's _Tina_ and there's something about their time together that's totally not weird. His mom has gotten used to the fact that he's never at home after school and before dinner anymore- she just ends up assuming that he's over at Tina's place. They typically do their homework in comfortable silence, but Mike's starting to have some difficulties in keeping quiet while the gentle scratch of their pencils fill the air around them. He always ends up on his stomach, his chin perched in the palm of his hand, studying her focused expression as she tackles her math homework. There's something about the way her dark eyes flit across the papers that lie before her that's almost...alluring but definitely mysterious.

"So," he pipes up one day, watching as her head snaps up to gaze at him at the sound of his voice. "Tell me about your hometown."

Tina gives him a small smile, "This isn't gonna help your homework progress, you know."

He shrugs, "Pity."

She puts down her pencil with a laugh, "I'm from a small town in Illinois- what do you want to know about it?"

"I don't know," he grins, feeling oddly exhilarated. "_Everything_." Because sometimes, Tina is a mystery to him. And the amount of time they spend together really isn't the same as the amount he really _knows_ her and he really gets frustrated with how much of a closed book she can be.

"Well, I grew up with a lot of friends, but I drifted away from them one by one," Tina begins, looking down at her hands as if slightly embarrassed. "I guess kids at that age don't really have any patience for the weird girl that likes to practice singing and dancing instead of playing soccer out in the local park."

Mike can totally imagine Tina locked up in her bedroom, practicing her dance moves with determination. It kind of makes him smile and also makes him wonder a little what her dancing is like. He'll have to remember to ask her to do a little number for him someday.

"The town is super small, kind of the same as Lima," she continues slowly. "I used to go to the ice cream parlor at the corner of the block with Maggie, my best friend, all the time and sometimes we wouldn't even get ice cream, we'd just sit at one of the white picnic tables that were set up outside the parlor and just talk for hours. She moved to California when we were in third grade, though. It totally broke my heart. I don't have a sibling and she was the closest thing I had to a sister at that point. Then I realized... that I was so young then that it was hard to remember the sound of her voice and the features on her face a couple years later."

Even though she's being nonchalant about it, it's actually kind of depressing and he can't help but open and close his mouth like an idiot, trying to decide what to say. But she doesn't really wait for him to say anything.

"I guess the goth thing really started when I was in eighth grade," she muses, tapping her chin. "At first, I just wore darker colors because it helped me avoid standing out in a crowd. But after a while, I started getting a little more into it simply because I think it's a cool style."

"No vampires? Death? Darkness?"

"Stereotypes," she declares, dismissing it with a shrug. "Wearing goth clothes is just a part of a style. People assume that I'm obsessed with death because of the clothes I wear. It's like assuming that you're a hardcore hipster because you're always wearing skinny jeans and cardigans."

"Hey!" He sits up abruptly and folds his arms defensively.

"See what I mean?" She smiles. "You're not a hipster, as far as I can tell. There are certain judgments we make based on people's wardrobes, and while some of them may be true, others are a little more misleading."

She's right, he knows. She's also wiser than he's been able to give her credit for so far, and it goes way past her black dresses and neon shades of makeup. And it makes him feel like he can _really_ start understanding her, too.

* * *

The next day's most significant event comes into his life like a shower of hail. School is usually a total haze to him, mostly because he likes to tune out his teachers and doodle in the margins of his notebooks, but also since he barely gets enough sleep most nights due to the overwhelming amount of homework he always has (though it's gotten better lately due to Tina's incontestable ability to speed up their homework process). But right after the last period of the day, he's walking to his locker when he sees it.

It being Karofsky with a huge cup of what can only be the infamous slushy, something Mike's never given nor received before in his life, which is why he's still on what Puck calls the "pussy list" of the football team, and he's been putting it off ever since day one because it looks like it _hurts_ and even though he never usually knows the people who gets slushied, he can't help but feel like it wouldn't be a pleasant experience to deliver one.

But today, he _does_ know the potential recipient, and it becomes painfully apparent when he turns his head a little to find Tina at her locker, her long black hair shielding her eyes until she presumably senses Karofsky's looming figure and lifts her head to view him.

"Hey little miss goth," Karofsky grins devilishly. "Here, I thought this might match the color of your freak lipstick."

And Mike suddenly knows what's going to happen before it even happens. He's maybe fifteen feet away from Tina and Karofsky and he knows that if he _really_ sprints, he can be in between them in less than a second and he's going for it before he can process what he's doing because Karofsky's already tilting the cup in preparation for the throwing of the slushy and Tina's eyes are growing wide but soon, he can't even see her face because he's right in between them facing Karofsky and he's got ice and god knows what else they put in slushies all over him.

It's weird, never would he think that a drink could be considered a lethal weapon, but he's almost positive that it should be classified as one because the ice bits _hurt_. The syrupy liquid is running all over his face and he's trying to wipe it away from his eyes when he hears Karofsky.

"Dude, what the _hell_ was that?" Karofsky snaps.

"Get out," he manages through gritted teeth.

"Figures. Mike Chang, always on the pussy list."

"Just get out of here," Mike says, spluttering the slushy away from his lips.

"You friends with _this_ chick?" Karofsky sneers. "Why are you protecting her?"

"_Karofsky_."

"Fine. God, wait til the guys hear about _this_."

Mike's finally managed to clear most of the slushy away from his face, licking it off of his lips, before turning to face Tina. Even though he doesn't really feel like a hero or anything, he kind of at least expected some form of gratitude, but her eyes are positively _blazing_.

"...Tina?"

"What. Was _that_?"

"I-"

"I don't need to be _protected_, Mike," Tina growls, her voice low and dangerous. "And I need you to understand that I can fend for myself and that I don't need _anyone_ to take care of me."

"But-" He's totally bewildered by now, and he's trying to make heads or tails of the situation but she keeps storming on.

"I thought you were different," she folds her arms and he's almost certain there's disappointment in her voice and he's absolutely sure that his cheeks are flaming red at this point.

"What do you mean?"

"All guys are the same," she gazes at him steadily. "None of them believe in women." And with that, she's already turning on her heel and stomping away down the hallway, leaving him there completely and utterly speechless, with only the fading taste of the cherry slushy to accompany the dry bitterness in his mouth.

* * *

"Heard you hit in all time low yesterday," Finn mentions the next day while they walk toward the cafeteria.

"What?"

"Puck's already talking about making your president of the pussy list club."

Mike sets his jaw at this, "Shut it."

"Why'd you do it, man?"

"I don't wanna talk about it," Mike says flatly as he orders his lunch. He yanks the wrapped sandwich from the cart and pays the lunch lady. "I'll see you around."

"Dude, where are you going?" Finn calls out after him as Mike starts to walk out of the cafeteria.

Mike doesn't answer him, but he's already walking at high speed toward the library.

She's sitting by herself as usual, a book in one hand and an apple in the other, and he can't help but notice how her eyes flicker over the pages with lighted interest. He takes a deep breath before sitting across from her. He knows she notices him because her eyes dart upward a little before returning to the book.

It's quiet for a while as he struggles to search for words.

"I'm sorry," he finally says quietly.

She doesn't bother to look up. "For what?"

He blinks, confused. "For... for insulting your abilities. And your beliefs. And for taking the slushy yesterday when you could have handled it yourself. And-"

"-Mike," she interrupts.

"What?"

She finally tears her gaze away from the book and sets it down slowly, as if searching for the words to say to him. "It's not really something you apologize for."

"It's not?" He furrows his brow, not following.

"Nope," she shakes her head. "It's something you can hopefully learn from. So you can develop respect for the people around you. Namely, the _women_ around you. Look," she hesitates a little. "Maybe you're used to coddling Brittany or taking care of her-"

Which, even though it's true considering how many times he's brought her meals or driven her around town or whatever else he had done, makes him feel a little defensive, as if Tina is attacking his past relationship even though he kind of has the feeling that she isn't really trying to.

"-but I don't need that, okay? Er... Not that we're in the same situation as you and Brittany were in or anything..." She's blushing a little and he's suddenly overcome with the temptation to place the back of his hand against her cheek to feel the warmth of her blush. Although she _did_ almost imply that they were in a relationship even though they both knew that they weren't and he has no idea why he's imagining them in a relationship but he tries to shake the thought from his head.

"I get it," he says softly. "But Tina... I respect you. A _lot_."

"Respect's not really a vocal gift," Tina replies, but there's a hint of a smile on her lips and he can't help but feel a little relieved because maybe that means they're okay again. "It's a performance. You have to relay it through your actions." She places her hand lightly on his and it sends a jolt through his entire body that he has a hard time reasoning through. "I appreciate it, though. Your apology."

"No problem," he manages, smiling sheepishly.

"And even though you should never, ever do it again," she grins, "I did appreciate you taking the slushy for me. I know how much it hurts."

This makes his smile grow wider. "No problem," he repeats, flipping his hand over from under hers in order to squeeze hers gently.

Because maybe he's been totally clueless about Tina Cohen-Chang. Maybe she's not like Brittany or any other girl he's known so far. Maybe he's going to have to spend hours upon hours figuring out the mystery that is Tina. But he's getting there. And he kind of gets the feeling that maybe he doesn't mind all that much, either.

* * *

**Author's Note:** **I love the idea of wise!Tina. :) Anyway, hope you enjoyed and don't forget to review. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: I've been getting some questions lately about this story. It's not really going to be all that canon, and it'll be short, too. I'm thinking it'll be ten chapters? Okay, that's not short, but it's shorter than my other stories. :) Anyway, hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Street football is actually kind of helping Mike's game, and maybe Coach has noticed lately or something because he's been getting a lot more playing time recently. With Brittany, he'd devote his extra time to spending time with her, but now, he's mostly just been using any free time he's got to go out for runs (sometimes accompanied by Tina) or just stay inside to catch up on homework. It makes him feel significantly more anti-social, but his grades and his playing have improved significantly.

They're playing one of their biggest rivals today- West Jefferson High School, a team that actually kind of looks like they manufacture two hundred pound guys, and, as Mike surveys the field where everyone's warming up, he figures he's easily the skinniest guy present today. Granted, he's usually the skinniest guy around no matter what, but there's something about the sheer bulk of the other team that genuinely frightens him a little. As he puts on his helmet and inserts his mouth guard awkwardly past his lips, he tilts his head back- the sun is already setting, and it's going to be a long night of bruises and shouting, but Mike's all for it- in fact, he's getting more and more pumped as the team gets together by the bench and Finn delivers his captain's pep talk during their huddle.

Mike's heard Finn's speech many, many times. And sure, it's a little different each game, but the gist of it is always consistent. _Fight hard, push through, finish strong_. Mike gets it, even if some of the other guys are staring at Finn extremely intently, as if they had never heard such words before.

The bleachers are crowded with students and even some faculty- Mike knows that a lot of the teachers come out to support them. But amidst the sea of red and white, something catches his eye. There pretty much aren't any other Asians in the school, and he's pretty sure it's some sort of natural Asian talent to be able to pick another Asian out of a crowd in a matter of seconds, so when he spots Tina in the stands, he can kind of feel his heart drop into the pit of his stomach.

Tina is sitting in one of the first rows of the stands, so she's really, _really_ close. _What's she doing here_? He's never seen her at a football game before- in fact, he vaguely remembers her mentioning that she doesn't really like to go to big social events. He's tempted to just run up and sit next to her, but he refrains from doing so. She's not wearing black- instead, she's decked out in a red dress and a black and red scarf, and she's even got the red and black marks on her cheeks that everyone usually does during football games, and he has to admit, it's pretty cute. When he finally manages to catch her eye, she half-smiles and he winks, the corners of his mouth curling upward as he gives her a little wave.

"Who's _that_?" Azimio appears at his side once Finn's done pep talking. "Chang, is that _Gothika_?"

"What?" Mike isn't really sure what to say, choosing to feign innocence rather than confirming the nickname.

"Is she here for _you_? Oh _hell_ no, Chang. Don't tell me you two are _friends_."

"Well-"

"-Or worse, _dating_. Now that I think 'bout it, I've seen you around with her a lot lately. You got something to say about it?" Azimio sneers.

"We're not dating," Mike says coolly, and starts to open his mouth again when Azimio places his hands around his mouth as if trying to project his voice.

"CHANG AND GOTHIKA! _Geez_, talk about low standards."

"Shut it, Azimio," Mike snaps.

He glances frantically up at Tina, who's close enough to be within earshot, and he knows she's heard every word that's left Azimio's mouth because she's blushing furiously.

"That's enough of that," Coach snaps, swatting Azimio upside the head before turning back to the game strategy. Azimio rolls his eyes but waggles his eyebrows at Mike, as if taunting him or something and Mike is getting testy. Fast.

Mike glowers at Azimio, who is sending him and Tina jeering looks, and he really just wants to throw a couple punches his way, but Coach is already calling off the lineup and sending them down the field, which means Mike doesn't even have a chance to look back at Tina as he runs out to the field to take his place.

* * *

While the Cheerios perform their halftime show, Mike dashes to the stands to find Tina. But she's not even there anymore.

No doubt she was so bothered by Azimio's comments that she just up and left, Mike reasons with an inward groan. Great. Mike paws through his gym bag in search of his cell phone.

Mike: where are you? :(  
Tina: home

Frustrated, Mike tosses his phone back into the bag and gets ready for the second half.

It doesn't help that they're losing.

* * *

West Jefferson beats them 42-28. Coach is _not_ happy. And neither is Mike, and he would stick around for the post-game sulking like everyone else but after his five minute shower, he's already running out of the locker room.

"Where are you _going_?" Finn calls out after him.

"Gotta get home!" Mike invents wildly, the door already swinging shut behind him.

Mike's not really thinking straight as he clambers into his car and starts driving down the road, running his fingers through his still wet hair. Luckily, he catches mostly green lights on his way back and by the time he passes by his own house and pulls up on the Cohen-Changs' driveway, he's getting _super_ impatient.

He presses the glowing doorbell, practically stumbling right into the front door, and when Ms. Cohen-Chang answers, Mike's pretty much ready to burst through the door and dash up to Tina's room.

"Mike! How are you?" Ms. Cohen-Chang is her usual jubilant self and Mike leans down to hug her like a proper gentleman would.

"I'm great, thanks. Is...Tina here?"

"Yeah, she got home early from the game and ran up to her room. Want me to call her down?"

"Nah. If it's okay, I'd like to go up and talk to her."

Ms. Cohen-Chang smiles and gestures toward the staircase. "Be my guest." Bless Ms. Cohen-Chang's heart.

He hurries up the stairs and appears at Tina's door, only to find her curled up on her bed with a book propped open. She's in a nightgown- black and silky, but her cheeks are still painted with the red and black streaks. His eyes linger on the nightgown for a moment because...well, he's a guy, and it's a _nightgown. _Snapping his eyes back up to her face, he bites his lip. He hesitates a little before getting her attention. "...Tina?"

Her head snaps up and she shuts her eyes for a moment before looking back up at him. "Hi," she says softly.

"Can I come in?"

She laughs at this. "You've been in here like four hundred thousand times, since when do you have to ask?"

He gives her a sheepish smile, shuffling in and standing awkwardly next to the bed while she casts him an exasperated look. Tina pats the bed, presumably indicating for him to sit down and he does, settling into the sheets before turning to face her.

"You okay?"

Tina stares. "Of course I'm okay."

"...Tina."

She sighs, dog-earing the page in her book and setting it aside, folding her legs into a pretzel. "What do you want me to say, Mike?

He frowns, swinging his legs onto the bed, brushing past her knees momentarily. "I want you to tell me what you're thinking."

"Look. I get that we're not really of the same social status. And I get that since we're neighbors and everything, we spend a lot of time together. I've really, _really_ appreciated the fact that you befriended me, especially because I'm the new kid around here. But if your friends have a problem with it-"

"-They're not my friends," he interrupts. "They're my teammates."

"What's the difference?"

He gives her a steely look. "I've got higher standards than _that_."

She rolls her eyes, but gives him a small smile. "I appreciate it, Mike. Really. But I don't need any compromises from you, okay? I don't need you getting yourself into anything because you're hanging around a loser or-"

"-Whoa, whoa_, whoa_. Who said anything about you being a loser?"

She's actually kind of looking at him as if he's being an idiot or something at this point. "Don't be stupid. Have you _seen_ me at school?"

He doesn't say anything, choosing instead to look down at her hands, which are positively wringing at this point. Because, yeah, Tina's quiet and reserved at school, and he's _seen_ and _heard_ people make fun of the way she dresses, but he genuinely doesn't believe that she's a _loser_.

"Mike, I don't know if you live in your own little jock world or something where everything's all rainbows and ponies or whatever, but I'm in _glee club_ and I can't spit out a sentence without turning red and tripping over my own words. That is, in every definition, a loser."

"I don't think you're a loser." Because she _isn't_. Mike _knows_ this. Tina's _cool_ and she's funny, and even if she _is_ shy at school, that doesn't make her less cool than anyone else.

"In high school," Tina stares at him straight in the eyes, "it's the collective opinion that matters."

"Between you and me... I think it's just our opinions that matter."

He's struck by the truth of his own words, because honestly, he's grown closer to Tina than anybody else he knows besides his own _family_, for god's sake, and in theory, it shouldn't matter what the rest of the school thinks about their friendship. Obviously, that would only apply in a perfect world, but _still_.

Tina's staring at him _hard_. As if she's unsure about what to say but still has so many things swirling in her brain because she keeps opening and then closing her mouth.

"You're not a loser, T."

"I am."

"Not to me."

"_Mike_," she looks thoroughly exasperated at this point. "I-"

She stops suddenly because her mom has walked into the room and looks as if she has something to say.

"Hi you two. Mike, your mom just called to make sure you were here and we got to talking. She says there's a potluck at the Asian Community Center this weekend-"

"-Again?" Mike groans, burying his face in his palms. The ACC holds potlucks quite spontaneously throughout the year and Mike gets dragged to them _every_ time and he's usually the oldest one there, which means he's the designated babysitter _every_ time and there are _way_ too many little Asian kids running around and trying to get him to play hide-and-seek when he's trying to eat. Last time, one of them had dropped a penny in his soup.

"Yes," Ms. Cohen-Chang smiles. "And your mom also graciously invited us to come along. What do you say, Tina?"

Tina is staring at her mom, then staring at Mike, then back at her mom again before agreeing dubiously. "Sure."

"Great," Ms. Cohen-Chang beams before leaving the room.

"You have no idea what you just sentenced yourself to," Mike warns. Secretly, he's beyond relieved. He's always the only one at these potlucks at his age and having Tina there would be a great change in pace.

"What do you mean?"

"Screaming little Asian kids _everywhere_. The only good part is the food," he replies matter-of-factly. "And I promise you that you won't be able to understand like half the people there because whenever they see kids, they just babble and gush and _not_ in English."

She chuckles. "I think I'll take the risk."

"It's your funeral. Don't complain to me when they pull out the karaoke. _Believe_ me, _none_ of them can carry a tune. And Tina?"

"Hmm?"

"Come to my next game, okay? Only... only if you want to. Don't listen to the rest of them. They're just a bunch of idiots."

"I'll come," she relents. "Maybe I'll sit a little further back in the stands so they won't make fun of us."

"_No_. Sit wherever you want and if they've got a problem with it, they can bring it up with me."

She giggles a little. "Pulling out the iron fist?"

He grins widely. "Damn straight." He hesitates for a moment but makes a small movement forward because he kind of feels like this is a hugging moment but he can't really be sure because she's staring blankly at him for another fraction of a second.

But at this point he's already kind of tilted upward on his knees and his arms are snaking forward and Tina gives him a big smile before edging forward and swinging her arms around his neck before he reaches her. Her cheek is pressed to his temple and she's kind of kneeling on her bed with her nightgown pleated against her skin. His hands land on her waist.

She's warm and soft in his arms and they rock back and forth for a moment before she pulls back and rubs his arm gently. Affectionately. "Thanks, Mike."

He's finding it kind of difficult to croak back a _you're welcome_ because his mind kind of feels like a hazy mess and honestly? He's long past the point of full consciousness.


	7. Chapter 7

At his last count, there are nine small Asian children present today. Nine screaming voices and nine pairs of running feet that's rendered him totally dizzy. There are six other kids who are a bit older- preteens, if anything, and they've each got an expression on that plainly says, "_I'm way too cool to even be here right now_." He groans audibly, burying his face in his hands before turning to Tina, who's standing next to him, gaping at the scene before them.

"I _told_ you."

Tina smiles, but it looks a little bit forced. She's twisting the hem of her Hard Rock Cafe t-shirt and biting down on her lip. "Don't be ridiculous, Mike. I'm sure it'll be fun."

"Fun? Sure, if you call the world's biggest babysitting job _fun_."

She ignores this, her eyes sweeping across the big rec room, where all the kids are hanging around. The adults usually stay in the big multi-purpose room, where there's a big stage and a bunch of cafeteria-style tables set up. "What do you guys usually do?"

Mike shrugs. "I usually lead a game of soccer out on the lawn behind the building and most of the girls stay in here to watch TV or something. This is great, though, because I usually have to leave Vivian in charge," he nods toward Vivian, a thirteen-year-old girl who's texting frantically on her cell phone. "I trust you with them more than I trust Vivian," Mike grins.

"_Hey!_ Just because I'm texting doesn't mean I'm deaf," Vivian huffs.

Tina frowns. "I'd be up for a soccer game."

"You play soccer?" Mike blinks, astonished.

"Well, not really. But I mean, it's just for fun, right? It's not like this is McKinley's Varsity team or anything."

Mike's impressed. "Well then, sure. Vivian, you're in charge, then."

Tina's got a thoughtful expression on her face. "Wait, don't you girls want to come out and play, too?"

Vivian exchanges a look with Erica, who's sitting next to her. "We don't _play_ soccer."

"Oh, c'mon. Neither do I." Mike watches as Tina grins and rests a hand on Vivian's shoulder. "It's just for fun. Besides, we can do girls versus boys."

Erica rolls her eyes. "_That's_ a stupid idea. The boys would crush us."

"You never know. Where's your girl power?" Tina grins mysteriously. "C'mon, it'll be fun."

Vivian and Erica share a dubious look, but, to Mike's surprise, they both get up and nod. "Okay."

Mike has been coming to these potlucks for two or three years now, and never has he ever seen the girls join the guys outside for soccer or basketball or frisbee or _anything_. He gapes at Tina as she cheerfully leads all the rowdy little kids out the back door. He swears to god she's a miracle worker.

* * *

They've split off, and true to Tina's word, they're playing boys versus girls and Mike's got his little team in a huddle and he has to admit, it's kind of cute the way they're all so focused and intense about it so he gives them a little pep talk.

"All right guys! Full speed ahead, okay? Let's beat the girls! Boys rule, right?"

"And girls drool," little Aaron Lee pipes up.

Mike cracks up. "And girls drool."

They break and everyone gets into position (except not really- they're mostly just standing randomly along their side of the small field). Tina's team is already ready, except all the girls look super out of place on the field- Vivian's hair is completely down and Erica is picking at her nails.

"Ladies kick off first," Mike says graciously, handing Tina the ball.

"Forget it. We don't need your handicap," Tina huffs, shoving the ball back at his chest. "You guys can kick off."

Mike arches an eyebrow, somehow not all that surprised by Tina's feminist retort. "Whatever you say."

Mike sets the ball down at Aaron's feet and Aaron instantly passes it awkwardly toward Tim, who's running down the field. The game explodes with action, and there are so many little Asian kids everywhere that Mike's having a hard time figuring out what exactly is going on. He knows that Tim missed the ball completely and Vivian somehow has it instead, dribbling it gingerly down the field until Nick bulldozes her, stealing the ball away and leaving Vivian whining in protest. Mike hangs back a little to play defense while the other kids go crazy. Alan, one of the stockier boys, nearly elbows Karen in the face. Aaron trips over his own shoelaces and tumbles to the ground in a tangle of his own limbs. As Mike jogs over to make sure Aaron's okay, Tim scores.

"Whoooo!" Mike cheers along with the rest of the guys. He glances over at Tina, who's standing in the middle of the field with her hands on her hips.

"Don't get ahead of yourselves," Tina tosses her hair confidently. "C'mon, girls. We need another team meeting."

He laughs as the girls all huddle up with their game faces on and as some of the guys start smirking, basking in their new glory.

When their huddle breaks and the game restarts, Mike starts off with the ball and begins to dribble it down the field, past Vivian and Karen, who both try and fail to steal the ball from him. With a slightly apologetic grin, he continues, breaking past everyone and approaching the goal, where Nikki is tending goal.

He's all ready to wind his leg back to get a swift shot at the goal when a blurry figure whizzes past him and suddenly, the ball is gone. Stupefied, he blinks rapidly, trying to scope out the scene, when he hears Tina whooping at the top of her lungs, sprinting down the field with the ball at her feet. She is somehow rather coordinated, dribbling the ball nimbly and laughing breathlessly. _What_? _How_?

Shaking his head with laughter, Mike runs down the field after her, but Alan, Aaron, and Tim are already beating him to her and suddenly, all three of them are tackling her to the ground and to be honest, he's kind of impressed because all three of the boys are pretty damn small.

Tina's shrieking with laughter and the rest of the girls are looking scandalized, backing away from the pileup as if afraid to become a part of it as well.

"All right, all right, let's let her up," Mike's absolutely cracking up, unable to stop himself from laughing as he pulls the triumphant trio up onto their feet in order to let Tina up.

As Tina brushes off her jeans, then finds a significant dirt stain on the front of her t-shirt, she groans, narrowing her eyes at the boys. "Oh, you guys are _so_ in trouble."

And even though the boys are all giggling at Tina's teasing glare, Mike feels like he needs to be scared _for _them because Tina proceeds to score two goals, ends up assisting both Vivian _and_ Erica in _their_ goals, and by the time the game's over, the score is 5-3...

"And _that_," Tina grins as the rest of the girls hug her waist, cheering raucously and making faces at the boys, "is how it's done."

And even though he's out of his mind frustrated that they lost, he's got something much more pressing on his mind- he can't help but stare at Tina, who is hugging the rest of her team, beaming with happiness.

How Tina _ever_ got to be such a badass, Mike will _never_ know.

* * *

Tina comes out of the girls' bathroom with a water stain where the dirt used to be on her t-shirt, and Mike laughs when he sees her.

"Hey! It's not funny," she elbows him in the side. "Besides, this is a _victory_ stain."

He holds up his hands, "All right, all right. You guys won fair and square. But I'm trying to permanently erase this loss from my memory, okay? Let's go eat." He gestures toward the multi-purpose room, where countless smells are coming from, and right now, he's honestly so hungry he feels like he's ready to pass out.

"Sore loser," she teases as he leads the way, opening the door for the two of them as the sounds of the room burst out to greet them.

Asian parents are _loud_. They always are, and when you add in a bunch of hungry Asian children, it makes for a _noisy_ room and Mike's already starting to get a headache from it. But he grins and bears it like always, leading Tina toward the huge table of food.

"Okay, so the way it works here at the ACC is every man and woman for themselves," Mike grins, grabbing two paper plates from the teetering stack at the end of the table. "Some of this food can disappear in a matter of seconds, so you just gotta grab and go."

Tina laughs, accepting the plate and gingerly picking up a couple of plastic utensils for the two of them. "Sounds good, I-"

"_Michael_! How great to see you!"

It's Mrs. Peng, an over-excitable woman in her mid-forties that's close friends with Mike's mom. She was on business or something for the past month or so, and Mike hasn't seen her in a while, which naturally means...

Yup, Mrs. Peng, despite her small figure, nearly knocks him over with a huge hug. He hugs her back awkwardly, casting annoyed looks over at Tina, who's shaking with silent laughter. When Mrs. Peng pulls back, she glances over at Tina and her eyes positively _light_ up.

"Ooooh," she gushes. "New girlfriend? And _Asian_, too, oh your parents must be so _happy_! I think I _already_ like her more than that Bethany girl you were dating before. She's _very_ pretty, Michael, how come I haven't seen her around before? I-"

"Mrs. Peng," Mike interrupts, because both he and Tina are blushing furiously at this point. "Tina isn't my girlfriend. And my ex's name was _Brittany_, like I've told you a thousand times. And _yes_, Tina is very pretty, but we're not dating."

Mrs. Peng's face falls at this, and she mutters something under her breath that Mike can't quite make out before patting him absently on the arm and striding away.

"Sorry about that," Mike sighs awkwardly as they shuffle down the line of food, helping themselves to noodles and vegetables and all sorts of dishes. "Some of these Asian parents get pretty..."

"I know," Tina smiles softly, reaching across the table to fish a couple of dumplings onto her plate.

His face is flushed, he just _knows _it, and he feels like he needs to say something to make amends with the awkward conversation that just happened, but he casts a sideways glance toward Tina and she's just serenely scooping rice onto her place so he figures it's better to just keep quiet.

* * *

They're sitting at the table in the far corner when it happens. Mr. Lao is breaking out the karaoke, handing out microphones to two adults he doesn't recognize, and he groans out loud as the rest of the adults look on excitedly.

"Oh god, oh god. Okay," Mike turns to Tina, who's finishing off her dessert. "I have a special place I go to when it's karaoke time around here."

Tina chuckles. "A special place?"

"Yeah," he nods fervently. "C'mon!"

Tina tosses her empty plate into the trash can and follows Mike out as they sneak out of the multi-purpose room just as the intro to the first obnoxiously loud song booms through the room.

His "special place" isn't actually all that special, but it _is_ where he hides out when he's forced to come to these things. It's one of those walk-in closets that never gets used because somehow, everyone always manages to toss their coats on the stage in the multi-purpose room. He opens the door to the closet, which is actually quite spacious, and holds out his hands.

"Here it is," he announces proudly.

"...Mike. This is a closet."

"_Hey_! This is my special place, okay? Don't make fun of me."

She plops down on the floor, running her fingers through the carpet as she looks up at him, her eyes big and innocent. "I'm_ kidding_, Mike. So what do you usually do out here all by yourself?"

He sits down next to her, straightening out his long legs and leaning back on the palms of his hands. "I usually read, but I didn't bring a book today because I knew you were coming."

"So what are _we_ going to do today?"

He slowly pulls his iPod Touch of his pocket and waves it in front of her face. "I thought maybe you could show me your moves. Since you're in Glee club and everything."

Her face turns a little red at this. "You want me to dance for you?"

"Well...yeah, if you don't mind," he grins.

"Why are you so interested?"

"I can't be curious about the dancing abilities of my friend?"

"_Mike_."

"Okay," he holds up his hands. "I happen to like dancing. A lot. And I just wanna see what you've got, okay?"

"_You_ like dancing? How come I didn't know this?" Her voice rises with excitement and he can't help but chuckle.

"It never came up," he shrugs.

"That's terrible reasoning. Do you really dance? That's so amazing!"

"Not really," he says uncomfortably. "Just in my room sometimes. Does this mean you'll dance for me?"

She taps her chin thoughtfully. "Only if you dance with me."

"_What_?"

"Yeah!" She grabs his iPod from him and scrolls through his music and suddenly, _I Won't Dance_ is playing and he smiles as she places his iPod gently down onto the ground.

"Great song choice."

"I know." She stands up quickly and tugs at his hands. "Come _on_. Just freestyle it. That way, you can watch me dance and I can watch you."

"Okay..." Mike agrees hesitantly, standing up, not knowing who's supposed to start.

She fixes that issue, however, when she starts twirling on her left foot, her body swaying with the beat as she performs an impressively complicated little move with her legs. Starting to get into it, he joins in, copying her and adding a little bit of his arms into the dance and after a certain point, he's totally in his own little world or something because his body has completely taken over and it's almost like he's in his room again, dancing like an idiot by himself. She's laughing breathlessly and the sound of her laughter is echoing in his ears along with the steady beat of the music and the light, airy voice of Frank Sinatra.

One of his little spins ends up going a little too far, however, and his limbs get tangled with hers and suddenly, they're crashing to the floor, thankfully with his body underneath hers because god knows what would have happened if he had landed on top of her. She emits a small little yelp as her body hits his, and his arms and legs are spread out against the carpet and she's sort of half lying on top of him with her torso flush up against his. Inhaling sharply, he presses his lips together, not knowing what to say as she pushes back her hair, her breath heavy against his skin.

He's overly aware of every little thing about this moment, everything from her wide brown eyes to how warm her skin feels to her lips, which are looking abnormally soft right now and he swears to god they're like less than three inches away from his face and he's overcome with the most insane desire to fully comprehend _just_ how soft they are...

"Sorry," she breathes, her voice light and careful.

"You're really good," he doesn't know why he's whispering, but he is and his chest is rising and falling rapidly and he really hopes she isn't aware of how fast his heart is racing right now.

"So are you."

Her body is still pressed against his and he's seriously afraid to move even a fraction of a centimeter because he's afraid that if he does, she'll jump up and freak out or something.

Never before in his life had a moment been frozen like this for _so _long. He's totally staring at her like an idiot and her eyes are trained steadily on him as well, her teeth biting down on her bottom lip as if she wants to say something. He finally decides to move when several strands of hair fall in front of her face and he reaches up with one of his arms, removing it from under one of her legs, and pushes her hair back gently and it strikes him as horribly cliché until he realizes that it's not _really_ because it's only really cliché if they're in a relationship and about to kiss or something. His hand ghosts over her cheek as he retracts it and he's seriously probably moving at snail speed but for some reason, he can't bring himself to go any faster.

She's moving now. She's moving away, sitting up a little so she's kind of half on his legs and he sits up immediately, too and she kind of sinks into his lap and he opens his mouth to say something, but then closes it again.

"_Mike?"_

His head snaps up at the sound of his mom's voice and Tina scrambles to get up. He swings open the closet door and shouts out. "What?"

His mom is rounding the corner and appearing by the closet with a huge smile, totally not even noticing that her son just walked out from behind closed doors with a girl. "Tina's mom wants you and Tina to sing something for us!"

"Oh no, no, _no_!" Mike shakes his head violently. "I am _not_ singing. Tina should, though, she's amazing."

She makes a face at him, the redness in her cheeks finally starting to fade away a little. "You've never even heard me sing."

"Yes I have," he replies matter-of-factly. "You sing sometimes when we Skype and you think I'm like eating dinner or something."

The color rushes back to her cheeks. "_Mike!_"

But at this point, Mike's mom is already way too excited and she drags Tina and Mike into the multi-purpose room again and successfully manages to pull Tina up onto the stage, positively beaming.

"Pick a song!" His mom urges as everyone in the room cheers at their newest karaoke participant.

As Tina picks a soft, slow number that he only vaguely recognizes, he sinks into a chair toward the back of the room and rests his chin in his hand, his elbow against the table as Tina's sweet voice fills the room and, as everyone in the room murmurs with approval, it's clear he's not the only one totally entranced by her singing.


	8. Chapter 8

Tina has been continuously teasing him about bailing on her during karaoke for the past week and even though he knows she's kidding, Mike can't help but feel a little bit of regret. It would have actually been really fun to sing up there with her despite his lack of vocal abilities, and it also would have been quite the experience to be able to laugh and joke about it afterward.

Because honestly, he's looking for any excuse to talk to her lately. Ever since the ACC potluck last week, he hasn't been able to get her out of his head. She's been caught up with Glee rehearsals quite frequently so it's hard to find time to chat; their afternoon runs have completely disappeared due to her heavy rehearsal schedule. But Tina's been great about it all the same, usually arriving at his doorstep after dinner once in a while, her hair wet from taking a shower and her eyes clearly heavy with fatigue. Because no matter how many rehearsals she's got, she still faithfully shows up for their weekly math study sessions.

But not being able to see Tina around quite as often means _looking_ for her at school. It's kind of embarrassing, really, the way he already has her schedule sort of memorized. It's after third period, which means that she _should_ be walking down the third floor hallway toward her English class. He usually lingers here for a bit to wave hello to her as she's walking by, and he's usually rewarded with a tiny smile from her and it sounds silly but he's actually grown to look forward to it everyday.

It's weird because he didn't see her after third period at all today, and even though there's probably nothing to worry about- she could have gotten to class early or stayed behind in her math class- he can't help but be a little put off by this thought. He's not even paying attention to his history teacher during class; his mind is wandering and creating potential explanations as to why Tina wasn't anywhere to be found.

Halfway through class, Mike becomes seriously lost in the lecture and decides he's better off dipping out into the hallway for a drink of water to kill some time. Grabbing the pass that Mr. Truman keeps on the door, he slips out of the classroom and into the hallway, making his way toward the water fountain. Honestly, ever since Mr. Truman decided that it would be a good idea to leave the hall pass hooked around the doorknob, most people abuse it pretty frequently. But to be fair, it's not _their_ fault that Mr. Truman's lectures are so boring.

As he bends over to get his drink of water, Mike hears a soft gasping noise. He stops abruptly, releasing the pressure from the button on the water fountain and turning on his heel to follow the sound. It's coming from the next hallway over.

The hallway is completely empty except for one crumpled figure that is collapsed against the wall next to the girls' bathroom. Mike isn't sure what to make of it until he realizes that the lacy magenta dress that the figure is sporting looks all too familiar...

"_Tina_?"

It _is_ her. Tina's head snaps up and he can suddenly see her red-rimmed eyes and quavering lips and most importantly the purple slush that's dribbling off the side of her jaw. Which can really only mean one thing...

Mike hurries to her side, sinking down to the ground next to her and he can see her tense up a little, which he does his best to ignore. "What _happened_? Who did this to you?"

"Doesn't matter," she mumbles, burying her face in her hands. Tina's voice is soft and broken and it just about rips him to shreds the way her shoulders slump like she's given up on reasoning through it all.

"It _does_ matter," Mike shoots back fiercely, "Tina, tell me who did this, I _swear_-"

"-_No, _Mike. _No_. Listen," Tina sniffles a little as she turns to look at him, her eyes smoky with resolution, "I don't _need_ to be protected. I shouldn't even be _crying_, this is ridiculous. I've _told_ you this before. I-"

"-_Tina_. _You _listen. You're _allowed_ to cry," Mike says firmly, "You're _allowed_ to be upset."

"No. No, it's _stupid_. It's _nothing_ to cry about," Tina mumbles despite the tears flowing freely down her cheeks. She wipes them away rather aggressively.

"Tina," Mike soothes softly, hesitantly wrapping his arm around her waist. Her gaze zeroes in on him at this, but this really isn't the time to worry about whether or not she's okay with it. All he knows is that she's broken and he needs to help her piece herself back together. "I know you're a bit of a feminist, but I-"

"-I don't look for feminism. I look for equality," Tina retorts. Even through her teary state, she manages to sound fierce and independent.

"Okay," Mike relents, "Equality, then. But you're still a human being. You still have feelings. And if someone out there is hurting them, I swear to god I'll-"

"-Mike, I told you I don't _need_ your help with any of this-"

"-It's not about what you need," he says quietly, "It's about what you _want_. Maybe you want some sense of security, you know? Maybe I can help you with that..."

"What, are you going to become my personal bodyguard?" Even though she's clearly joking and even though the term "bodyguard" is a little weird, Mike seriously wouldn't mind.

"Of course not," Mike sighs, suddenly very aware of the fact that his arm is still looped around her waist. "But... but Tina... maybe it's _okay_ to reach out for help sometimes. Maybe it's _okay_ to be a little dependent once in a while."

"Maybe I don't wanna be dependent," Tina mumbles, sinking a little into him and he can feel his own breath catching as she does so; her body is warm and he feels like he already knows it even though they've never been like this before. Quite frankly, it makes him feel like a blushing middle schooler the way he's turning red and he hopes to _god_ she can't tell that he's sweating profusely under his armpits.

"Can you believe me when I say that you're still a strong, independent woman even if you ask for someone else's help?"

Tina doesn't say anything in response, choosing instead to shrug silently, her eyes darting away from him. He lets the silence settle.

They stay there for another five minutes without a single word, and Mike's only vaguely aware of the fact that he's totally skipping his history class right now. But Tina's in his arms and hell, he'd choose that over history- over _anything_- any day.

* * *

Tina finds him after school while he's on his way to the locker room before football practice.

"_Hey_!"

Mike whirls around to find her chasing after him down the hallway. He breaks out into a smile, "Hi there."

The hallway is empty and he can hear the gentle clacking of her footsteps against the linoleum as she rushes over. He's glad to see that the swelling around her eyes have gone down and her face looks fresher and more cheerful.

"Hi," Tina breathes, "I just... I just wanted to say that you were right. Earlier today."

Mike grins, "I was... I was what? I didn't catch that last part."

She narrows her eyes at him, "Don't push it, Mike Chang. You know how much I hate admitting defeat."

He chuckles, "I know, T. I'm teasing."

"This... this doesn't mean I want you _protecting_ me or whatever," Tina says warningly, "I just... wouldn't mind having someone to turn to when stuff like that happens."

Her eyes are sparkling with fresh tears and Mike knows that she's not quite over the whole debacle yet. He hesitates a little before brushing her hair back gently with his right hand. "Well then, I'll be here for you, okay?"

Tina glances up at him behind her long lashes and finally murmurs, "I know."

The way she's looking at him... Mike's no expert with any of this kind of thing but he swears she's got this expression on her face like she's ready to... to lean forward or something...

And _yes_, she's _definitely_ getting closer and closer to his face but he _really_ doesn't want to make any assumptions because he would feel like _such_ an idiot if he's really just reading this whole thing wrong. But no, her eyelids are fluttering downward and she's rising a little bit on her toes and there's _no way_ this could mean anything else...

It doesn't happen like an explosion of fireworks or anything that the movies usually indicate. Well, it's not like it's his first kiss ever- his first kiss was with Brittany and it really wasn't even a huge deal- but it _feels_ like some sort of epic milestone they're reaching or something. Mike feels like he's sinking into her and the way her lips taste fiery and soft is driving him over the edge in a way that Brittany's kisses never did- and maybe he's being corny or maybe it's just his mind playing tricks on him- but _god_. He's hyper-aware of every little movement- everything from the way that she sucks gently on his bottom lip to the way he's molding his lips against hers. He wants to memorize every last second of it.

It doesn't last nearly as long as he would have liked; Tina's pulling back and she's got a slightly anxious expression in her eyes. "I-I'm sorry, I don't know if that was okay and I-"

Roughly translated, he can take this to mean that she wants it just as much as he does, which means he's been given the green light to cup her chin in his hand and pull her closer so that their lips touch again as she basically engulfs him in flames.

* * *

Mike's not really sure where to go from here. They've both sunk to the ground next to each other in front of her locker after breaking apart a couple of minutes into their heated kiss. He's missing football practice right now but he'll come up with an excuse or something later. Honestly, he can't even _focus_ on football right now because his hands are glued to the floor and Tina's is sort of on his and her hand is soft and warm and comforting even though they're both looking straight ahead as though too afraid to be the first one to say something.

But he's the guy and even though Tina probably doesn't approve of the gentlemanly stereotype, Mike figures he should really be the one to initiate any conversation they should be having. Because... well, because they just _kissed_, for god's sake. What is he even supposed to _make_ of this whole situation? Does she want to go out with him? Was it an accident? He's really starting to worry that maybe it was a mistake to let her kiss him; don't relationship protocols call for asking the girl to go out on a date before any kissing should commence?

He musters up as much courage as he thinks is humanly possible and mumbles, "T-Tina?"

Her head snaps suddenly in his direction and her gaze is steady and measured, "What?"

Mike quails a little even though she probably didn't mean to be forceful or sharp. He shifts his body so he's facing her, "Do you... did you..."

Her eyes are squeezing shut as grips tightly onto one of his hands, "_Michael Chang please do not tell me that you regretted that._"

"No! No, I didn't! Of _course_ I didn't, why do you think I kissed you again? I- I don't regret it at all..."

"Then answer me this," Tina says slowly, "Are you gonna be a dumb jock about this and forget me and forget this ever happened or-"

"Okay, _whoa_. Have I not proven to you yet that I'm not just a dumb jock? I'll have you know that I got a ninety-seven percent on my last math test."

"Really not the point right now, Mike." Tina's cheeks are bright red and Mike can't help but notice how pretty she looks this way.

"Okay, well then I'll backtrack a bit," Mike takes a deep breath, unable to ignore the fact that his hands are shaking slightly, "I like you, Tina Cohen-Chang. I like you a lot and I think I've liked you for a long time now. I like being your friend but I think I'd like being your boyfriend way more so if you'd let me, I'd like to ask you out. On... on a dinner date."

Tina's pressing her lips firmly together and her eyes are squinting a little and she hasn't said anything for eight seconds now which means Mike's really starting to worry that his little spiel sounded totally stupid to her until she starts taking both of his hands in her own and breaking out into one of the most gorgeous smiles he's ever seen. "I'd like that, too. But if you think you're paying for the whole bill, you've got a lot to learn, Mike Chang."

Mike can feel himself start to grin as well and they simultaneously move closer toward one another and suddenly, her face is inches away from his own. Mike trails one hand along the side of her face and recaptures her lips, which taste just as fantastic- if not, more so- as they had ten minutes ago and Mike kind of figures that it's not all that likely he'll ever grow tired of _any_ of this- of _her_.


	9. Chapter 9

Mike's a little worried that this date will rapidly become a terrible cliché and Tina will end up hating it. There really aren't that many nice restaurants in Lima, so Breadstix was really the only viable option, but as he waits patiently outside Tina's house with his car parked on her driveway, Mike can't help but feel a little bit ill at ease; what if she thinks he's being corny and lame? He had even initially considered buying her flowers, but he instantly realized that would _definitely_ be overkill, so he ended up getting dressed in a hurry without stopping by the florist's and pulling on a cardigan and a pair of skinny jeans before heading out to pick her up.

Tina appears outside her front door moments after he sent her a text. She's dressed in a one-shouldered black dress with silver chains hanging off the sides and it's mind-bogglingly sexy and _so_ Tina at the same time that Mike's having a hard time forcing his jaw back up into its normal position. Even the way she's _walking_ toward his car makes his mouth feel dry and his tongue feel like it's rapidly expanding; she's got a sort of nervous stride going on, but there's still a definite swing of her hips that Mike _knows_ he won't be able to stop thinking about for the remainder of the night.

It's really, _really_ surreal. It's been perhaps five months since the first day he saw her, five months since he introduced himself to her, not realizing he would slowly but surely start to think about her more and more. It's been five months of falling headfirst into a friendship he's never experienced before. Even with Matt things were different; sure Matt's a cool guy and he makes a kickass Call of Duty player, but Tina's been different. And maybe now he's realized that the reason why she's so different is because he doesn't just want to hang out with her, he _needs_ to _be_ with her.

"It's impolite to stare, you know."

Tina has already opened his car door and is in the process of climbing in when she arches an eyebrow, clearly amused. Which sends a flush of red through his cheeks.

"Sorry." It seems to be a prime opportunity to say something corny like "_I couldn't help myself_" or _"Not when you're worth staring at_" and even though both statements are totally _true_, he knows better.

She makes herself comfortable in the passenger seat and Mike knows he's supposed to start up his car or something at this point but he doesn't and now _she's_ staring.

"_What_?" Tina asks, half laughing and half rolling her eyes.

"Sorry," Mike mumbles again, smiling a little. "You- you look fantastic."

"Thanks," she grins, "And you... well you'll do, I guess."

Mike cracks up, "Ouch."

Any tension that may have previously formed is quickly evaporating. This is him and Tina the way they've been for the past five months. Comfortable. Certain. In fact, in no time at all, they're laughing and joking together the same way they always do, even if today is fraught with first date jitters.

By the time Mike pulls into Breadstix's parking lot, Tina's doing impressions of Mr. Schuester and Mike is having a difficult time breathing in between bouts of laughter. They file out of his car and walk into Breadstix, during which Mike slips his arm easily around her waist, waiting for her reaction. But when she settles comfortably into his grasp, he relaxes, knowing that it's okay. That _she's_ okay with this.

Because tonight is going to be a lot of waiting, a lot of anticipation. A lot of testing the waters and hoping for the best. Mike knows there's a certain boundary line between a friendship and a relationship, and now that that line is on its way to disappearing, they have to figure out where the _new_ boundary lines are. Or _if_ there are new boundaries...

"Table for two?"

Mike nods to the maître d, who promptly seats them at a cozy booth by the windows, leaving a pair of menus before them.

They order and their food comes surprisingly fast; it's weird because usually they can't shut up when they're around each other but today, there's a lull in the conversation. They eat their food relatively quietly.

"You nervous?" Tina's eyes twinkle.

"Wh-what? _No_! Of course not? I mean... nervous for what?" It sounds more and more lame as he trips over the words. He can feel himself blushing.

"I'm teasing," she reaches for his hand, which is resting on the table next to his napkin. Her hand feels warm and secure, something he can _totally_ get used to.

"Clearly!" Mike grins good-naturedly, "What, are you trying to make tonight difficult?"

"Of course not! I-"

"Well, well, well. Look who it is."

Mike and Tina's heads snap up at the exact same moment and Mike can seriously feel his heart sinking rapidly because Azimio, Karofsky, and two other meatheaded freshmen football players that Mike doesn't recognize are standing right in front of their booth. _Shit_.

"I know my eyes ain't playing tricks on me, man. Chang is on a _date_?" Azimio snorts.

"What's so surprising about that?" Mike asks coolly.

"Well the date ain't that surprising," Azimio retorts, "It's the _girl_ that's surprising. Isn't this the Glee goth chick? I think she's in my Spanish class!"

"History," Tina says quietly.

"Are you serious, Chang?" Karofsky grunts, "Are you two really here on a _date_? Who _paid_ you?"

"No one. Get lost, all of you. I'm on a date," Mike snaps.

After more unwarranted guffaws, the four depart, heading to the back of the restaurant. Mike turns back to Tina with an apologetic glance.

"It's okay," Tina reads his expression correctly, her voice soft, "If it bothers you, we don't have to go out on another date."

Mike gapes, "But... but I already have date number two planned out. Are you prematurely dumping me?"

Tina giggles, "No! I'm just... I'm just saying-"

"Didn't I already make it clear that I don't care what those guys think?"

"Well yes, but-"

"-And didn't I say that you _aren't_ a loser no matter what those guys think?"

"Well _yes_, but-"

"So Tina Cohen-Chang, it would be my honor to take you on a second date, if you'd let me."

"You're so corny."

"Oh, this isn't even half as bad as it could be," Mike winks.

Tina chuckles, pushing her hair back behind her ear, "Well my answer is yes. But just out of curiosity, how do you already know we're going to have a second date? What if this date goes awfully?"

Mike pretends to look hurt, "You think it's going awfully?"

"No! But how do you know we're going to enjoy our time together?"

"T... we've been hanging out non-stop for the past five months."

"But that was different! We were just friends. Now it's like... what if you find out that I'm really annoying on dates? Or what if you do weird things when you take a girl out? Or what if you accidentally call me Brittany?"

"Okay first of all, you have been nothing short of perfect so far tonight. Secondly, I don't do anything weird on dates that I know of. And lastly, I would _never_ call you Brittany."

"I still say it's a bit of a leap of faith," Tina taps her temple.

"Okay, so what do you propose we do?" Mike smiles, leaning forward.

"We should play a game," Tina suggests giddily, her cheeks flushed. Mike can't help but find it incredibly endearing, the way she can turn anything into something interesting and exciting.

"What's the game?"

"All right, so I'm gonna ask you a series of questions and you have to answer them as fast as you can. Don't over think them! If I like your answers, maybe we're right for each other after all," Tina grins slyly.

"Tina, is this really necess-"

"We'll start off easy. Favorite song?"

"_My Way_."

"Mmm good answer. Favorite kind of pie?"

"Apple all the way."

"Ooooh too bad. I was looking for cherry. If your house was on fire, what would be the first thing you'd want to save?"

"My CD collection."

"_Nice_, I'll take that. Favorite subject in school?"

"Science."

"Oooh should have picked math."

"Seriously, T? After all the help I've needed from you in math so far?"

"Right. Vanilla or chocolate?"

"Vanilla, definitely."

Tina frowns, "I like chocolate."

"So what does this mean? We're not compatible or something?" Mike pouts. A waiter comes by to take their finished plates and places the bill on the table in between them.

Mike makes a motion to grab the bill (after all, a gentleman always pays on the first date), but there's a fire in Tina's eyes that stops him. And suddenly, every conversation they've ever had, every time Tina ever snapped that men never give women any credit floods his brain, and most importantly, what her terms of condition had been when he had asked her out. He suddenly realizes that in order to win her over, he needs to do something that's so against his code of chivalry that it almost makes him sick.

"Split it?" Mike asks weakly, defeated.

The smile that spreads across Tina's face is epic. Priceless. "I dunno, Mike Chang. I'd say we're pretty damn compatible."

* * *

The biggest break in normal-date-traditions tonight is the fact that Mike only managed to foot his half of the bill. And sure, he had skipped the flowers and kept to cheesy lines to a minimum, but here they are on her porch, the fluorescent light pooling before them, and he can't help but feel that they're in a movie.

"I had a good time," Mike says quietly, tracing his toe along the ground.

"Me too," Tina smiles serenely.

"So... does this mean I can take you out again sometime soon?"

Tina studies his face, her eyes focused and steady, "I don't know, Mike. What do you have planned?"

Mike starts to break out into a smile, "Don't laugh, okay?"

"I can't promise that."

"I thought... I thought you could come over and watch a movie with me in my basement and afterward we can play... Scrabble."

It's a good thing she didn't promise, because she starts to laugh. But not a mean laugh. An appreciative one. And he's glad he can read that.

"I don't know... Are you sure you want to get your ass kicked again?"

"Hey! I've gotten better, you have to admit."

She smiles, biting down on her bottom lip in an irresistibly adorable way. "Fine. I accept your challenge."

"Next Friday night?"

"What are we supposed to do until then?" Tina asks softly, gazing at him behind her lashes.

"We just need to find something to tide us over until then," Mike whispers, inching closer toward her. Because he's been finding that he's been craving the taste of her lips, the tingling sensation he gets when she had pressed her mouth to his.

And suddenly, all he can feel is the warmth of her lips and he quickly discovers that their third kiss is more passionate and breathtaking than the first two, and Mike can't help but think that maybe that's just what it's like to date Tina Cohen-Chang. It only gets better and better as each day goes by.

And, as it turns out, that's just one of the many wonderful aspects he will soon learn about his new girlfriend. The girl next door who he had wanted to become friends with so badly when they first met, and now, he wants nothing more than to be her boyfriend. Funny how things worked out sometimes. Funny how all of a sudden, the mundane term "girl next door" no longer even _begins _to adequately describe Tina Cohen-Chang. She's something much, much more than that.

* * *

**A/N: This is the end of _Girl Next Door_! Thanks to everyone who stuck by it and please let me know what you thought! **


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